Naruto the Marine: story discontinued
by Dorlath
Summary: Naruto/ One Piece Fusion. Join Naruto in the world of One Piece on his adventures with the Marines. Meanwhile Luffy and his crew are still out there. What will happen when the two meet?
1. Chapter 1

**Edit 5-6-10: Now with the line breaks eaten by this annoying website that won't even let me enter its name into the story without removing it.**

**Notes**: This story will be a Naruto and One Piece fusion. However, it will take place in the One Piece world with the One Piece rules. This means that instead of chakra and jutsu, we'll see devil fruit, haki, and more.

Luffy and his crew will feature heavily in the story, but the primary focus will be on Naruto and his adventures with the marines. I am making the Naruto characters older to bring them more in line with Luffy's crew. Naruto is 17 at the start of the story, which begins about one year prior to the start of One Piece.

**Disclaimer**: I own neither Naruto nor One Piece.

**Naruto the Marine**

"Sakura!" Naruto yelled from the ground below the window to her second story room.

"Sakura!" he yelled again when he didn't receive a prompt enough reply.

A few moments later, the window opened and a pink haired girl stuck her head out the window.

"What are you yelling about this time?" she asked him, but thankfully he didn't notice any real irritation in her voice.

Naruto had learned long ago that calling for Sakura in this manner too early in the morning wasn't good for his health. And although he'd held off until 9:30, that was still a somewhat risky time. But given how important today's news was he couldn't bring himself to wait any longer.

"I came to say goodbye," he informed her. "I'm leaving the island today to join the marines."

"What's all that racket, Sakura?" A voice called out from somewhere behind Sakura.

"It's Naruto, mom" she replied. "He came to say he's leaving to join the marines."

"Again?" her mother inquired. "Well, tell him I'm serving unagi tonight and he's welcome to eat with us when he gets back."

"She makes it sound like she doesn't believe I'll go through with it," Naruto complained to Sakura. "I'll have you know I'm completely serious."

"We know you're serious," Sakura told him. "But you've tried this about a dozen times in the last ten years and Mayor Sarutobi has caught you every time. With a boat docked here, you know he'll have it watched."

"It's different this time," Naruto insisted. "I have a plan that's sure to work. So if you have anything to say to me, say it now. It might be a long time before we see each other again."

"Okay, goodbye Naruto. See you for dinner," she told him cheerfully.

Annoyed, Naruto turned around and stalked off, Sakura laughing at his antics as he departed. They may doubt him, but he'd been planning this attempt for a while and he wasn't about to fail again. He was getting off of Leaf Island.

Not that he had anything against the island, but its single small town with a population of 31 felt positively confining to Naruto. He had much bigger dreams than possibly replacing the old man as mayor some day. And sure he'd miss Sakura. Having been the only other kid his age growing up, they'd become friends almost by default. But there was a whole world of exciting people to meet and things to do.

And today it would all start he promised himself. He'd worn his favorite outfit to commemorate the occasion, a white shirt and white pants. The shirt had blue seagull designs on its sleeves. It wasn't an official Marine uniform, but it was his own personal tribute to his career choice.

As he walked along he passed a number of houses. Given the size of their village, they didn't have a professional carpenter or a town planner. So the houses were built somewhat haphazardly rather than in a neat line. They weren't always of the best construction either. At some point before Naruto was born, someone had decided to put in a cobblestone road that sort of zigzagged between the buildings. Even that wasn't as well maintained as it could be.

It didn't take him long to come upon a small warehouse on the edge of the village. It was even cruder than most of the houses, actually having a thatched roof of all things. Sneaking inside as quietly as he could, he closed the door behind him. Then grabbing an empty crate from the back, he moved it next to a large pile of similar crates near the entrance. Opening the top he climbed inside and closed it behind him.

Previously he'd always tried to sneak directly onto the ship. But as Sakura had said, the old man was sure to have it watched. But if he hid among the cargo the village was selling to that merchant ship, they'd carry him on board themselves and he'd appear to be nothing more than another box of goods.

He didn't have to wait long before he heard the door open and soon after felt his crate being lifted. He remained as motionless as he could, barely daring to breath. But after what seemed like an eternity to Naruto's frayed nerves, the box was set down. He then waited what must have been twenty minutes listening for any other movement.

Finally, he decided to risk lifting the lid to peak out, only to find himself staring at the face of Mayor Sarutobi, who was nonchalantly smoking a pipe.

"What are you doing on the ship, old man?" Naruto demanded of him.

"We're not on the ship, we're in my office," he replied. "I was having you followed. So when you tried your little stunt, I just had you carried here."

Looking around Naruto confirmed this to be the case. They were in the somewhat cramped room in Sarutobi's house that doubled as his mayor's office. It wasn't any cleaner than usual either, books lying about haphazardly all over the place. And his large desk was completely covered in paperwork dealing with village affairs.

He was dressed in his working clothes. Dark blue pants and shirt that were probably cotton, like every piece of clothing someone didn't trade for from outside the island. With its small population Leaf Island didn't even warrant a full time position for a mayor.

Although at Sarutobi's age, none of the villagers would have complained if he retired from his regular work. But the man insisted on continuing his regular job as a fisherman. And from what he'd heard, he still managed to bring in more fish than the village's other three fisherman put together.

Naruto climbed out of the crate, realizing there was no longer any point to remaining inside.

"Why do you have to keep stopping me?" Naruto asked accusingly.

"Because with your parents both gone, I'm your guardian. And I'm not about to let you run off without understanding the full implications of your actions."

"I may have bought that story in the past, but I'm seventeen now," Naruto retorted. "I do understand the risks involved. Yes being a marine can get me killed, and this island is on the grand line, so it's even more dangerous. I know all that."

"And what about the risks to the other villagers your leaving would entail?" Sarutobi questioned him. "Many of them have expressed concerns to me about your desires to leave. Considering what happened after your father left, I can't say I blame them."

"That had nothing to do with him!" Naruto insisted angrily. "If it was really some curse because a villager left the island, why did it happen more than five years after he left? I'm not going to stay here because of a bunch of superstitious villagers who should be grateful my father came back to save them after how they treated him!"

"I still don't feel you're ready to make that decision yourself," the mayor told him. "But if you'll calm down a little, I have something for you I do think you're old enough for now."

"What's that?" Naruto asked, curiosity tempering his anger at least for the moment.

Motioning Naruto to follow, he led him to a mid-sized wooden chest in a corner of the room.

"This was found on your father's ship after he died," Sarutobi told him.

"Really?" Naruto asked excitedly, then narrowed his eyes and looked accusingly at the old man. "Why didn't you give this to me before now?"

"You were too young," he responded. "I didn't feel right opening it myself, but for all I know it could be full of guns and swords. I would be irresponsible giving that to a young child. And more recently I was just afraid that whatever was in there would only reinforce that foolish notion of yours of joining the marines. But you're old enough now that you deserve to have it."

"I'm going to go open this. Thanks old man," Naruto told him then quickly grabbed the chest and rushed out of the room.

If it had been any larger, it would have been awkward to carry. But as it was, Naruto was able to make a decent pace while still trying not to jostle the contents too much. He was nearly to his house when he saw Sakura walking down the street toward him.

"Back already?" she asked him. "I take it things didn't go as planned?"

"Not exactly, but there'll be other ships," Naruto replied optimistically.

"You're taking it surprisingly well this time," Sakura noted, then focused her attention on his newest prize.

"Isn't that chest from the mayor's office?" she asked him, frowning a bit at whatever picture her mind was putting together of the events that led to him taking possession of it.

"You didn't steal it to get back at him for stopping you, did you?" she queried, the note of disapproval now clear in her voice.

"No, he gave it to me," Naruto corrected her cheerfully. "He says it belonged to my father. I'm bringing it home to see what's inside."

"Well, it makes sense he would choose today to give it to you," Sakura replied.

"What do mean by that?" Naruto asked, wracking his brain for any reason why today would be special but not coming up with anything.

"You must not have heard," she told him. "The merchants decided to relax in the bar for a bit after finishing their business. In addition to that, a marine ship just entered the bay. They're just staying long enough to stock up on provisions and then they're leaving."

"Really?" Naruto asked enthusiastically. "A marine ship?"

"Yeah, we almost never have two ships here at the same time. He probably wanted to distract you for a few hours until they've left since it'd be harder to guard both of them."

That did sound just like the old man too. Naruto was tempted to head to the bay right at that moment just to spite him. But even if it was playing into his hands, Naruto couldn't leave without seeing what was in the chest.

"Thanks, Sakura," he told her sincerely. "I'll just have to finish going through this before they leave. So I can't waste any more time talking."

With that he rushed off down the cobblestone path through the center of the town until he reached his house. It was a small single story building left to him by his father. Setting down the chest, he opened the door, slid the chest inside and let the door close behind him. Wasting no time he opened the lid and began going through the contents.

Looking inside he saw a small telescope sitting atop one of his father's marine uniforms. Moving the uniform he spotted three log poses. Although on closer inspection two of them were eternal poses. One was labeled Marinford, and the other had 'Leaf Island' scrawled on it. That last one must have cost his father quite a bit. Custom made eternal poses weren't cheap, and he highly doubted anyone else would have cared enough to make one for their little backwater island.

The final item in the chest was another, much smaller chest. Naruto quickly pulled it out and opened the lid. But he certainly wasn't expecting to see a piece of fruit in it. Was the mayor playing a joke on him? There was no way a piece of fruit would sit in that chest for more than a decade without rotting.

Actually, there was one way. The fruit was unlike any he'd ever seen before. Sort of shaped like a pear, but red in color with purple spots. Could it be a devil fruit? Almost as soon as the possibility occurred to him, Naruto made up his mind. Grabbing the fruit he took a large bite out of it. The flavor was pretty unpleasant, but he ignored it and finished off the rest of the fruit. He left nothing behind as it seemed to lack a stem or core of any sort.

Thoughts of what amazing new power he might have received were swirling through his mind, but Naruto pushed them aside to focus on trying to confirm he actually had eaten a devil fruit. Those who had eaten one were supposed to be unable to swim. But risking drowning didn't seem like the best way to find out, and he didn't want anyone else to know about this just yet anyway.

He knew some devil fruit users could transform their bodies, so he decided to try that first. He attempted to will his body to transform in some way, but after several minutes of that, nothing had happened. Well, maybe he could shoot something out of his hands or something like that?

Refocusing his will on trying to emit something, he felt some sort of energy stirring in his body. Willing the energy to move, he felt it almost leap out of him. Looking toward where it went, he examined the result of his efforts and smiled. This had a lot of potential.

* * *

**1 hour later**

Naruto sat looking out his window with the telescope he'd found in the chest. He had a good view of the bay from there and could see that both ships were now preparing to leave. Still he waited a little longer; he'd have to time this almost perfectly. The marine shipped finished preparations first, and Naruto saw them getting ready to raise anchor. It was time to put his plan into action.

Slipping out his window, he began to dash towards the marine vessel. It was larger than most ships that came to port, being more than twice the size of the merchant ship docket a couple hundred yards from it. Just seeing the seagull painted on the ship's flag gave Naruto an extra burst of energy as he ran, determined that today would finally be the day he joined.

Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a villager running after him. Naruto grinned to himself realizing his speed had forced the man to abandon his attempts at stealth. But his smile vanished when he noticed that despite his best efforts, the man was slowly gaining on him. He just hoped he could stay ahead of him long enough.

As he approached the ship, he saw a second villager moving to intercept him, but Naruto continued to run for the ship. He was only about a dozen feet from the second man, with the first having closed the distance to about half that, when he took the two spherical objects he'd been holding in his hands and threw one at each man.

The smoke bombs went off, obscuring them from view, and in the confusion, Naruto made a sharp turn to the left and changed course toward the merchant vessel. The two men who had been chasing him did not immediately give pursuit thanks to the smokescreen. He'd traversed most of the 200 yards when still another man attempted to intercept him.

He prepared a third smoke bomb for the man who must have been assigned to watch this ship and threw it at his feet. But this one was prepared for the tactic and continued through the smoke only to seize Naruto by the arm. The other two men quickly caught up and surrounded him. All three of them began talking over each other trying to berate him for his latest escape attempt. But Naruto tuned them out, smiling to himself. Then, in a puff of smoke, he vanished.

* * *

Meanwhile the real Naruto was already racing toward the marine ship that had begun to pull out to sea. This was cutting it kind of close, it was going to be difficult to reach the ship and he didn't exactly have the option of swimming out to it. He was only a few yards from the shore when his clone's memories integrated into his own. Ignoring them, he ran the last few yards at top speed, and then leaped toward the departing ship with all his might. He felt a moment of fear seeing all that water beneath him, but it passed as soon as his feet landed solidly on the deck.

This startled a number of the marines on the deck who obviously hadn't been expecting his last second arrival and he found more than a few guns suddenly pointed at him.

"Who are you? What are you doing on board?" One of the uniformed marines demanded of him.

"Relax men," another voice called out. "It doesn't look like he means us any harm."

Turning toward the voice he saw a large bearded man wearing an officer's coat over a suit. The other marines followed his orders and lowered their guns.

"Yeah, I'm here to enlist," Naruto told them cautiously, much happier with the guns no longer aimed at him and not wanting to do anything that would lead to them returning to their previous positions. "Are you the Captain?"

"That I am," he replied jovially. "Now would you mind telling me why you felt the need to make such a flashy entrance?"

"Most of the villagers are superstitious," Naruto replied. "They don't like to let anyone leave the island. But it's always been my dream to join the marines like my father did, so I wasn't about to let that stop me."

"I think I've heard of that superstition before," the Captain said thoughtfully. "Wait a minute; I knew Leaf Island sounded familiar. You're Admiral Minato's son aren't you?"

"That's right," Naruto confirmed proudly. "Namikaze Naruto, reporting for duty, sir."

"Well then," the Captain said, "if you turn out to be half the man your father was, it'd be nothing short of dereliction of duty if I stopped you from joining."

"Oops, sorry about that," the Captain added bashfully, realizing what he'd just said. "Bad choice of words. I didn't mean to bring that up."

"Don't worry about it," Naruto told the man.

"I must say that was quite the jump to get on here," he said, obviously wanting to change the subject. "You must have had a lot of training already."

"That was nothing," Naruto boasted. "We're a small island in the middle a major route on the grand line. Everyone is taught to defend themselves. I've been helping fight off pirates for years."

"Good to hear," the Captain told him, back to his cheerful demeanor already. "I'd wager you have a bright future ahead of you. Marinford isn't too far out of our way. I'll have you there in no time. Then you can start your official training."

This was turning out to be a near perfect day for Naruto. He only wished he could see the old man's face when he figured out that the chest he'd given Naruto had been the very thing that made his escape possible.

* * *

Sarutobi stood watching the ship depart through a pair of binoculars. Had the fruit's power been teleportation? Or maybe some type of illusion? Whatever it was, it would certainly aid the boy in his endeavors. And the villagers could hardly blame him.

After all, how was he supposed to know Naruto would have access to a devil fruit? It's not like he'd given it to the boy or anything, right? Sarutobi chuckled a bit at that, taking his pipe out of his pocket and lighting it.

"Good luck, Naruto," he said out loud. "Make your father proud."

* * *

**AN**

Well, there's the prologue. Hopefully it gives you some idea of the direction I'm taking this narrative. I do intend to continue this story, and I have tons of ideas for what to do with it. There are just so many options for whom to bring in from Naruto. Whether a character should be a pirate, a marine, or someone else. What devil fruit powers to pass out.

That said it may be a while before I continue this. I have another story I've left unfinished for too long now. But who knows, maybe this story will really grow on me and I won't be able to resist continuing it.

As for those who have me on author alert that may have preferred I continue Clan Loyalty, I know I said I wasn't going to start other stories until my current one was complete and I wasn't going to go months without updates. Now I've broken both of those commitments.

But I've been having trouble getting motivated to continue it, yet was itching to write this and try my hand at a crossover. Hopefully just getting writing again will get motivated to finish it. But between my growing sick of the Naruto manga to the point I've stopped reading it, and just being unhappy with a number of aspects of that story in general I'm not terribly confident of that fact.

Anyway, as always reviews, comments, and criticism, and ideas I can steal and claim were my own are all encouraged. And I have a thick skin so don't worry about offending me on the criticism side.


	2. Chapter 2

**Edit 5-6-10: Now with the line breaks eaten by this annoying website that won't even let me enter its name into the story without removing it.**

Naruto couldn't help but gawk at the size of Marinford as he made his way through the city. He'd heard of what cities were like from some of the merchants that visited their island. He'd even seen some pictures. But none of that had prepared him for actually being here and having his senses assailed. There was so much going on and so many people that it was almost overwhelming. And you could easily get lost among all the twists and turns of the buildings.

Naruto was suddenly very grateful for the detailed directions the captain had given him before they'd parted ways. Examining them again, he continued along his path, occasionally stopping just to marvel at his surroundings. But he soon found himself standing in front of the recruiting office.

Opening the door, he entered, finding himself in a small lobby with a few chairs on the side. There was a desk across the room with a woman sitting at it. She wasn't wearing a uniform but she was the only one in the lobby so he walked across the room to her desk.

"Can I help you?" she asked him.

"I'm here to sign up for the marines," Naruto responded.

"Just like that?" she asked him. "You don't have any questions or concerns?"

"Nope," he answered. "I've wanted to be a marine all my life."

"Well that's certainly refreshing," she told him. "Usually our recruiters have to twist arms to get anyone to enlist."

The woman then grabbed a paper from a stack on her desk and handed it to Naruto along with a pen.

"Just fill this out and sign your name at the bottom," she told him.

Leaning over the desk Naruto began to do just that. The form was pretty basic personal information about himself and any health issues he might have. So Naruto progressed through it pretty quickly.

"Our next basic training group begins in four days," the woman informed him as he was nearly finished. "This packet will tell you where and when you need to show up and give you general information on what your service will entail."

Finishing up and signing his name, Naruto traded the form for the folder she was holding out to him.

"Do you have a place to stay until then?" she asked him.

"Not exactly," Naruto replied, having sort of assumed you would just start your training as soon as you signed up.

"Well do you have any funds to get you by until then?" she queried.

"Some," Naruto replied vaguely.

"If you head down the street to the right you'll come to an inn by the name of The Seagull's Nest," she told him. "The Marine Force will subsidize your stay there. Just show them the packet and they'll give you a discount."

"Thank you," Naruto replied graciously.

"Also, do you want me to sign you up for the Officer Exam?" she inquired. "If so you'll need to show up at 2:00 PM the day before basic training starts."

"There's an exam to become an officer?" Naruto asked. "What's on it?"

"There are two parts," she told him. "A test of your combat skills and a general exam that covers everything from marine rules and navigation to general history. The curriculum is actually in that packet. But if you're hoping to become an officer, you may want me to sign you up for the next exam instead. Three days isn't much time to study for it."

"When is the next exam?" Naruto asked, considering her offer.

"A month after this one," she answered.

As much as he would like more time to fully prepare, Naruto doubted the small stash of beri he'd brought with him would last that long. No matter how much that inn was subsidized it probably wouldn't even feed him for a whole month.

"No, this one will be fine," he told her. "Besides I'll ace the combat portion easily."

Taking out a small piece of paper she began writing on it then handed it to Naruto.

"This is directions to the Marinford Public Library," she stated. "It has any number of books that cover the material on the test. You don't have a lot of time to study, but every little bit helps."

"Thanks again," Naruto responded earnestly. "You've been a huge help."

"Just doing my job," she replied modestly. "And good luck with the exam."

Waving goodbye, Naruto left the building and then examined the directions to the library. He'd head there first as it was already well into the afternoon and he wanted to make sure it didn't close before he arrived.

The directions were easy enough to follow, but despite that, when he'd completed them he didn't see the library anywhere. Well, the last instruction had said to take the second right, but maybe she hadn't counted that small alley he'd passed as the first one. Anyway, he should be close to it, so if he got to higher ground he'd likely be able to see it.

That in mind, he jumped onto the roof of the nearest building and began to scan for anything that might be a library. Then again, what exactly did a library look like from the outside? He'd never seen one before. Maybe it was one of the buildings he'd been standing by and he just didn't recognize it.

But one thing he did notice quickly was that he wasn't the only person up there. Just a couple houses away was a man with long, spiky, white hair looking through a telescope at something in the distance.

And the man was a marine officer judging by the uniform he was wearing. Curious as to what brought him there, Naruto approached the man.

"What are you doing?" Naruto asked when he was only the a few feet away.

"Gah! Nothing!" The man yelled out, fumbling with the telescope as he was startled by Naruto's question.

Turning around the man seemed to calm down when he got a look at the person who had just surprised him. Seeing the other man's face for the first time, he was drawn to the red vertical lines beneath each of his eyes. Was that painted on or some kind of tattoo?

"I mean I was simply keeping a lookout on the area," the man said, contrary to his previous claim. "I am a marine you know. I should be the one asking you what you're doing up here. You aren't causing any mischief are you?"

"I'm just looking for the library," Naruto answered, hoping there weren't any rules against being on someone else's roof. The last thing he needed was to get himself in trouble with the marines only minutes after he'd signed up.

"Ah, if you're looking for something to read, this is your lucky day. I happen to be an author as well as a marine," he declared proudly.

Pulling a small orange book out of a coat pocket he held it out expectantly toward Naruto.

"Thanks for the offer," Naruto responded, trying to decline as politely as possible, "but what I need is some material to study for the Officer Exam. I'm joining the marines myself."

"Still, you don't want to work too hard or you'll just get all stressed out," he replied, holding the book out insistently. "Believe me, this book is great for relieving stress."

Naruto was saved from having to respond when a third figure landed next to the two of them. He was another marine officer who looked older than the first, not that either of them would ever be considered young.

"There you are, Jiraiya," the new arrival called out. "I've been looking all over for you. And here you are trying to corrupt our youth again."

"Now you went and got me spotted," the man apparently named Jiraiya said to Naruto accusingly, before turning to the other man.

"What do you want, Garp?" he asked.

"You're Garp?!" Naruto asked the older man excitedly. "As in Vice-Admiral Garp? Garp the Hero?"

"Hey, why no reaction to my name?" Jiraiya questioned him, "I'm a Vice-Admiral too and famous as both a marine and an author."

"The kid just has good tastes, that's all," Garp countered.

"It's an honor to meet you, sir," Naruto told Garp, bowing respectfully to man. "If it's not too much trouble, I'm going to be taking the Officer Exam myself in a few days, and I would be grateful for any advice you could give me."

"Hmm, let me see," Garp said thoughtfully. "Actually there is one thing. Remember that the written exam comes first."

What was Garp trying to tell him? Maybe that he shouldn't warm up before going to the Exam because he'd just be sitting for a while? No, there had to be more to it than that, but Naruto couldn't figure out what it was. He didn't want to look stupid in front of such a great hero, but eventually curiosity won out over his desire to impress Garp.

"I'm sorry, but what exactly do you mean by that?" Naruto asked hesitantly.

"It's just that I got a little confused on that point back when I took the exam and beat up the proctor," Garp declared without the slightest hint he was embarrassed by that admission. "They caused quite a fuss over that, but it all worked out in the end."

Naruto stood dumbfounded at the response. Was that supposed to be a joke? Seeing as Garp was now laughing at his own words so he supposed that could be it.

"Ready to reconsider exactly which officer here you should be admiring?" Jiraiya asked him. "And just so you know, the library is one block North of here. There's a big sign so you can't miss it. I doubt musclebrain here even knows what a library is."

"Uh, thanks," Naruto replied a bit shakily, still somewhat shocked by Garp's 'advice'.

But pulling himself together, he decided to depart. He still needed to get to the library before it closed, and was no longer sure he wanted to continue talking to these two. Bidding them farewell, he jumped off the roof and began heading North as directed.

* * *

"Not bad for a recruit," Jiraiya said as the two watched him leap casually off the roof. "He even managed to sneak up on me. Granted, I was a little distracted at the time."

"Yeah," Garp agreed. "It's good to see at least one kid with talent who doesn't want to be a pirate. It's all that fool Roger's fault. Why even my own grandson talks of being a pirate, but I'll beat that notion out of him yet."

"You have a grandson?" Jiraiya asked in surprise. "I didn't even know you had any children."

"Ah!" Garp replied. "That was supposed to be a secret."

"Don't worry," Jiraiya told him casually. "I won't tell anyone young Patrick wants to be a pirate."

"His name is Luffy, you idiot." Garp fired back. "Really, and you say I'm the dumb one."

"Yeah, you're just too smart for me," Jiraiya deadpanned.

He wondered about this Luffy and why he was supposed to be a secret. That kid who'd just run off interested him too. He reminded him of someone but he couldn't quite figure out who. He'd worry about those mysteries later, for now he had to try and get rid of Garp so he could go back to his research.

* * *

Naruto set down the stack of books he'd borrowed from the library on a desk in the small, spartan room he'd just got at the inn. It was a lot of material for anyone to get through in just three days. But Naruto wasn't just anyone. Naruto summoned five clones, which he had discovered to be his limit. Dividing up the books between them, they all found a space in the now rather crowded room and began studying.

That night he learned another interesting fact about his power. His clones didn't need to eat or sleep. They also remained even as the real Naruto slept, studying on through the night. And despite some minor complaining on the part of his clones, they continued studying 24 hours a day right up until noon on the day of the exam.

He could probably study for another hour, but he wanted to leave himself plenty of time to get there in case he got lost in the city. Banishing his clones, he headed for the door and … fell to the ground in pain as it suddenly felt as if he had a dozen drills simultaneously trying to bore their way into his head. He tried to ward them off with his hands to no effect. Finally he got some relief as his consciousness faded.

* * *

Naruto woke up with the worst headache he'd had in his entire life. Through the pain he tried to collect his thoughts and figure out what had happened. Was this a hangover or something? Had he gone drinking to celebrate his joining the marines? But he couldn't even remember taking the exam.

The Exam! He finally remembered what had caused him to pass out. It seemed he wasn't able to handle the flood of a combined 15 days worth of memories. Rushing to the window he saw the sun already getting low on the horizon. He was late!

Opening the window, he jumped out to the street below, stumbling as he felt another surge of pain. But he grit his teeth and began to run off toward the building he was supposed to have been at hours ago. Arriving, he was horrified to find the place empty save for a few marines. He quickly approached the nearest one.

"Who's in charge here?" he asked the man.

"That would Lieutenant-Commander Iruka over there," he replied pointing to a dark-haired man on the far side of the room who was looking over a stack of papers.

Thanking the man, he hurried over to Iruka.

"Iruka, sir," he called out to him. "I'm Namikaze, Naruto. I'm here for the exam. I'm sorry I'm late."

"So you're the missing recruit," Iruka replied. "And you're more than just late, you missed it entirely. I thought you'd changed your mind and run off."

"I would never do that!" Naruto insisted. "I just had some extenuating circumstances the kept me from arriving on time. Is there any way I can take a make-up exam? Or I could just take next month's exam."

I'm sorry, but there is no make-up exam, and you're scheduled to begin tomorrow," Iruka informed him to Naruto's dismay. "Timeliness is important for an officer as well."

Iruka had a stern face that seemed to broke no argument, but Naruto wouldn't be deterred. His dream wasn't to become a common enlisted sailor. He was going to be an admiral, like his father. Maybe even make fleet admiral some day.

"That's not fair!" Naruto complained, "I make one little mistake and now I can't become an officer? There's got to be some way."

Iruka's face softened a bit at this, actually showing a hint of compassion for his plight.

"If you're that determined, there is a way." Iruka replied. "Regardless of whether you pass the test or not, everyone has a month of basic training. Those who passed will undergo a different schedule designed for officer candidates. However, at the end of the month, there is another exam."

"And I can take that one?" Naruto asked hopefully.

"That's right," he confirmed. "It's a much harder exam, the majority of the officer candidates fail to pass it each year. Add in the fact that you won't have the benefit of the month of training for it, and not many who fail the first exam even bother to attempt it. But a few try each year and it's not unheard of for one or two to succeed."

"Thank you very much," Naruto all but yelled at the man. "You have no idea how much this means to me."

"Instead of thanking me, just make sure you show up on time in the future," Iruka replied, trying to take on a stern look again, but unable to completely hide a small smile.

"I will," Naruto promised, and ran out of the room back toward the inn.

He'd make sure he passed the next one. Although maybe he'd stick to more normal means for studying this time. His headache still hadn't abated, but a quick examination of his memories showed the effort hadn't been a complete waste, as everything his clones had done seemed to be there.

* * *

Naruto walked down the barracks looking for room 121. He hadn't repeated his tardiness from the day before, and after completing all the necessary paperwork, he'd been given his room assignment. Finding his room he entered to discover that it was already occupied.

This wasn't unexpected as he already knew he'd have a roommate. The real shocker was that the occupant was the largest dog he'd ever seen. Seriously, the white furred animal looked large enough for him to ride.

The dog was looking just as intently back at him. They were still just standing there staring at each other when another boy walked up beside him.

"Oh, you must be my roommate," the boy said. "I'm Kiba, and this is Akamaru."

"They're letting you keep your dog here?" Naruto asked disbelievingly.

"This is more than just my dog, he's my partner," Kiba answered. "But they still wouldn't let me use him for the combat portion of the exam. I would have passed if they had. I mean I've never even practiced fighting on my own."

Naruto examined the other boy. He was brown haired, and about the same height as him. He was also the second person he'd met this week who had red lines painted or tattooed or something beneath his eyes, although they were much wider than Jiraiya's had been. Maybe there was some meaning to it.

"So, are you going to try to take the next exam too?" Naruto asked him, trying to make some friendly conversation.

"You bet I am," Kiba replied. "I had the highest score of anyone who failed. I just need a little practice fighting without Akamaru and I'll breeze through the exam. How about you, what was your score?"

"Well, I sort of missed taking the exam," Naruto said bashfully.

"What happened, you sleep through it?" Kiba inquired.

"No," Naruto replied before reconsidering. "Actually, I guess I kind of did but it's a bit more complicated than that. You see, I have a devil fruit power."

"Ah, cool, so does Akamaru," the other boy replied cheerfully.

"Your dog ate a devil fruit?" Naruto asked doubtfully, wondering if he was serious.

"Yeah, we think that's why he grew so big," Kiba answered. "He's also much smarter than other dogs, right Akamaru."

Akamaru barked in response to this making Naruto wonder if he actually understood what they were saying.

"And I can't exactly show you in here, but he can spin himself so fast he becomes like a drill. He can go right through solid stone."

"You'll have to show me some time," Naruto said with genuine interest. "But I can show you my power right here."

With that, he summoned three clones, and was pleased by the suitably awed look he received from his roommate. Akamaru, meanwhile was going from one to the next, sniffing them all.

"Are they all real?" Kiba queried.

"Well, they're all solid," Naruto replied. "But all of them except the original will just disappear in a puff of smoke if they take any significant blows."

Naruto then banished them all, which startled Akamaru, who had just been examining one of the clones.

"I also remember everything that happened to them after they vanish like that," he continued. "I was using that to cram in some studying at several times the normal rate. Unfortunately, I kept it up so long it was sort of a memory overload that knocked me out cold. I didn't wake up until the exam was over."

"That's a tough break," Kiba commiserated. "But that means you didn't even really fail, so you might have an easy time with the second test. Anyway, what made you want to join the marines?"

"My father was an admiral," Naruto replied proudly. "It's always been my dream to follow in his footsteps."

"Wow! He made it all the way to admiral?" Kiba asked. "My family has been in the marines for generations, and none of us ever made it that far. My great-grandfather was a commodore, and my mother is already a captain, so she might go even further. But not many people make it to Admiral. There's only, like, three of them right now."

Further conversation was put on hold as three other recruits showed up the door. One with a face that strongly reminded him of a rat, and two hulking brutes behind him. The rat boy was holding a clipboard in front on him that he was reading at the moment.

"Room 121," he muttered to himself, "That would make the occupants Inuzuka Kiba and Namikaze Naruto. My name is Nezumi and … is that a dog?!"

"Yeah, that's my partner," Kiba replied. "But how did you know Naruto and I would be in this room?"

"I have connections," Nezumi replied, having recomposed himself. "That's what I'm here about. For a few favors, here and there, I can pull some strings and make life a bit easier for you. I see here that you received the lowest score on the Officer Exam, Naruto, so you could use all the help you can get."

"Hey," Naruto replied, disgruntled by his words. "If you're here with us, that means you failed too, so don't act so high and mighty."

"Heaven's no," Nezumi answered. "I never even took the exam. I have no desire to be an officer, there's too much work involved. I'll simply graduate an enlisted man. Then my father, Captain Nezumi, will make sure I'm assigned to his ship and it's the easy life from there."

"Wait, is Nezumi your family name?" Naruto asked.

"It's my given name," the rat faced recruit answered. "It's family tradition that the oldest son is always named Nezumi. But back to business, I'm looking for a few more subordinates at the moment. All you have to do is a few simple tasks every now and then. In exchange, I pull some strings and get you on my father's crew when we graduate. A nice simple assignment in East Blue. You could hardly ask for a safer job in the marines."

"Thanks, but I'll pass," Naruto said firmly. "Unlike you, I want to be an officer."

"With how poorly you did on the first test?" Nezumi asked dubiously. "I can see how you scored so low. You're not too bright to pass up an offer like this."

Naruto was become quite steamed at the other boy's words. He wanted to give him a nice punch to the jaw to shut him up, but realized starting a fight on his first day wasn't the best idea. So he went with Plan B.

"Get out," he ordered Nezumi coldly.

"Well that's rude," he replied. "I haven't even had a chance to finish speaking with Kiba."

"You heard him," Kiba interjected. "Get out of here. We're sick of looking at your ugly face."

"It's your choice," Nezumi answered smugly, "But don't come crying to me when you realize this is a mistake. I don't give second chances."

Having said his piece, he turned a walked away, his two lackeys following behind him. Naruto stood watching them retreat, taking a few deep breaths to calm himself.

"We should probably get changed into our uniforms," Kiba suggested. "We need to be outside for basic training pretty soon."

Agreeing, the two of them did just that. Leaving Akamaru behind, they went outside, joined up with a growing group of recruits and waited. Soon a young purple haired woman came out, wearing a revealing outfit that was definitely not a marine uniform of any sort.

"My name is Mitarashi Anko," she announced to the assembled recruits. "And for the next month, you maggots are in my care. To start things off we're going to go on a nice five mile run. And as a warning, if anyone isn't able to keep up with me, there will be consequences."

Anko took off, and the group moved to follow. She set a decent pace, but nothing Naruto couldn't handle. A number of the other recruits started having trouble as early as a couple of miles in. Some looked practically dead by the time they finally returned back to their original starting point, but everyone had stayed with the group. He could swear Anko looked disappointed by that fact.

They were quickly put to work doing other exercises, situps, pushups, crunches. After she was satisfied they'd done enough, she called them all together.

"That's enough for today," she told them. "But make sure to get some rest tonight, we do this every day."

"That's it?" Naruto asked reflexively.

He did harder training than this back on the island. He'd assumed they'd just been warming up before the real training started.

"I keep getting told that I'm too hard on new recruits," Anko responded. "'Recruits are running away Anko.' 'Words spreading and now no one will even join, Anko' 'That's practically torture, Anko.'"

As she was giving her speech, she stalked back and forth among the recruits, like a predator looking for a sign of weakness.

"So I decided to be nice and ease you into it," she continued. "But apparently I was too lenient. Since one of you was kind enough to point that out, I'll rectify the situation immediately. We're going to repeat all the training we just did, starting with the run."

A collective groan went up, and Naruto saw more than a few dirty glares sent his way. But they weren't given time to do more than look as Anko had already set off again. As Naruto started running, Kiba pulled up next to him. He was glad to see the other boy didn't seem to be much bothered by the exercise either.

"I heard about Anko from my sister," he told Naruto quietly, eying the back of said woman warily as if nervous she'd hear. "Apparently she's a former pirate. Quite a nasty one too, had a thing for torture. She got leniency for ratting on her captain. But they keep her here in the center of Marinford where they can keep an eye on her because they're afraid to let her loose."

"Why would the marines let a former pirate train recruits?" Naruto asked dubiously.

"I'm just repeating what my sister said," Kiba replied defensively. "And you have to admit, she certainly looks the part."

A loud huffing noise let the two boys know someone else was approaching from behind them. Glancing back they saw Nezumi, struggling to catch up.

"If this … is some kind of … revenge," he struggled to get out between his labored breaths, "you're even dumber … than I thought. … You're suffering … just as much … as I am."

Naruto certainly didn't feel like he was suffering and was going to tell the boy so. But saying that seemed to have taken the last of Nezumi's strength as he fell to the ground right on the spot and lay there. Naruto and Kiba continued running, noticing Anko glance behind her.

"Looks like we have our first straggler," she said cheerfully. "You guys keep running, I'll be right back."

Looking over his shoulder, he saw Anko dash back to the boy and pull a whip from … somewhere. One that she immediately proceeded to put to use.

Naruto turned his focus back to where he was going, grinning to himself.

"You can't do this!" Nezumi screeched indignantly from behind them. "My father will have your head for this!"

She didn't seem to be worried by his threats, as the sound of the whip continued, much to Naruto's delight.

"Okay, maybe she was a pirate after all," Naruto conceded.

* * *

**AN**

Okay, I got the second chapter out pretty quickly, but I'm still not going to promise anything as far as how fast future chapters will come. If you're hopeful I'll continue a decent pace, I can at least give you the good news that I'm having a blast writing this so far.

I wish I'd tried a crossover like this sooner. I enjoy being able to grab any Naruto character and drop them into whatever role I want. So expect a lot of cameos even from characters I don't plan to make significant use of.

As for what's to come, I've got at least a chapter worth of training planned out. But I may try to keep it at just that, and speed through the year it'll take to catch things up to the start to One Piece's timeline. But comments, criticism, flames, I'm happy to hear them all.


	3. Chapter 3

**Edit 5-6-10: Now with the line breaks eaten by this annoying website that won't even let me enter its name into the story without removing it.**

Naruto sat on his bed, looking over a star chart. They'd just finished their training for the day and were falling into their usual routine. Three weeks had already passed since he'd joined the marines. And with just one to go until the exam, Naruto and Kiba had both been hard at work preparing to pass it.

It's not as if their basic training would be much help. He should have realized it from the name, but it was mostly just exercise, even if it had got a bit harder over time. Sure they mixed in a few things that were actually useful. Gun maintenance, steering ships, repairing leaks, and such. But he'd learned that most of the interesting stuff was saved until after they'd completed basic.

"Nose stuck in a book again?" Kiba asked. "You should come outside and do some real training with me."

"Believe me, I'd love to," Naruto replied. "But I'm already confident in my fighting ability. If I'm going to fail this exam it'll be the written portion. You could probably use to spend a little more time studying as well."

"I don't need to worry about that," Kiba said dismissively. "You do know that as long as you do exceptionally well on one portion of the exam, they'll pass you even if you totally bomb the other half right?"

"Really?" Naruto replied hopefully.

Most of this material was horribly dull, and he'd love nothing more than to throw out his books and go spend the last week sparring with Kiba instead. But as tempting as the idea sounded he quickly dismissed it.

"My father always used to tell me there's more to being a good officer than being able to fight," Naruto said firmly. "We might be able to pass the exam, but do you really want to be the type of officer who's only good at fighting? One that your subordinates can't rely on for anything else?"

"Man, no need to get all philosophical on me," Kiba said defensively. "I guess I can keep you company for one night."

Making good on his words, Kiba grabbed up a book on identifying edible plants that was sitting on the floor. Taking it over to his own bed he sat down and began to read. It wasn't long before he began to fidget.

"So how about that special training we're doing tomorrow?" Kiba asked. "Finally get to have some real fun, huh?"

"They didn't go into a lot of details," Naruto replied, "Just that it's some sort of naval combat simulation. You know anything else?"

"Yeah, I heard all about it from my sister," he answered, always happy to show off what he knew. "It's more a sort of a final test for the officer candidates. They give them a bunch of fresh recruits who aren't even done with basic training. Then they stick them on a ship and pit them against each other to judge how well they can lead their crew. For us it's mostly just a chance to enjoy ourselves."

"So do we get to fire the cannons at each other or what?" Naruto queried. "Because that sounds a bit dangerous."

"They have special paint balls for all the cannons and firearms," Kiba responded.

"Sounds fun," Naruto agreed. "I wonder who we'll get teamed up with."

* * *

Tashigi approached the area where she was told to meet her temporary crew and, sure enough, they had already gathered there. She was going to introduce herself, but held off when she saw a blond boy having a heated discussion with another recruit.

"You'll eat those words, Nezumi," the blond said angrily. "We're going to tear your team apart.

"I highly doubt that, Naruto," Nezumi replied smugly. "I noticed something odd about your group. The ten of you are the ten who received the lowest scores on the Officer Exam. Someone must really have it in for whoever is leading your group."

Tashigi felt like she'd just been kicked in the gut. She'd noticed she hadn't had the fairest treatment ever since she'd spilled hot coffee all over the commander's face. But he wouldn't deliberately try to make her fail out of officer training, would he?

"Then whoever they are is lucky you didn't take the exam," Naruto fired back. "It really would be hopeless if they had to deal with you."

"Please, I could have passed the exam with ease," Nezumi retorted. "Now I really have to be getting back to my own group. I look forward to seeing you squirm after we defeat you."

"This is group seven right?" Tashigi asked the remaining recruits, hoping that she'd somehow ended up in the wrong place.

"That's right," Naruto answered, destroying her last hope.

No, she couldn't just give up before she even tried. All of the recruits in front of her had at least hoped to be officers, having chosen to take the exam. So they couldn't be completely incompetent, could they?

"I'm Tashigi," she said, trying to sound more confident than she felt. "I'll be in charge for the remainder of this exercise. Now let's all board the ship and get this started."

See, that wasn't so bad, all of them were following her and not even one had talked back. Climbing aboard she found the proctor already standing on the deck. He had them wait a few minutes before telling them to begin. As soon as he did, most of her crew began rushing for the cannons. This lead to a bit of confusion as there were ten of them only four cannons on the small ship.

"We can't all use the cannons," a rather portly one announced, "So I'll take this one and some of you will have to find something else to do."

"That's not fair," another complained, "Why should you get to be the one to fire it?"

"Maybe we can all take turns," a third suggested.

Glancing nervously at the proctor, Tashigi realized she needed to get control of the situation fast. So she began selecting recruits at random and giving them tasks.

"You, take the helm. You, raise the anchor. You two, unfurl the sails. And you, climb up to the crow's nest and keep an eye out for the other ship."

"But I'm afraid of heights," the boy she'd selected as lookout complained. "I think I should just take a cannon instead."

"If you really are afraid of heights, now's as good a time as any to get over it," she replied angrily. "Now get up there. That's an order."

Out of the corner of her eye she saw the two recruits she'd ordered to unfurl the sails doing just that and gasped.

"Wait!" she yelled to them "That hasn't been properly secured yet!"

But her words reached them too late, as the newly unfurled sail caught the wind. This rather forcefully swung the boom around knocking both of them over. Thankfully the blond from earlier had already jumped in and was securing it, because she had another crisis to deal with.

"Help! Get me down from here!" a voice cried out from above.

The boy she'd sent to the crow's nest was halfway up, eyes closed, and clinging to the ladder with all his might. At least he hadn't been lying about his fear of heights, she thought bitterly.

"Just take some deep breaths and climb back down," she said soothingly. "I changed my mind, you don't have to go up there."

"I'm not moving," he insisted stubbornly.

Tashigi continued to attempt to coax him down until she noticed that, despite all the time she'd wasting doing so, the ship still hadn't moved. Looking over at the anchor she saw it had yet to be raised, the recruit assigned that task still struggling with it. She hurried over to see what was wrong.

"I'm sorry, but it won't budge," the recruit declared when he saw her coming.

Walking up next to him, Tashigi released the locking mechanism which was still in place and the crank immediately began to turn under the boy's efforts.

"Sorry about that," he said sheepishly.

The ship finally began to pull away from dock, but her relief was short lived as she heard first one, and then a second cannon fire.

Tashigi rushed over to get a look at the other ship, mad that no one had announced its presence. She saw it off to the port side approaching rapidly. But it was still pretty far off.

"What did you fire the cannons for?" she berated them. "They're still way out of range."

But they wouldn't be for long. Judging by their course, they were trying to get in front of them. A wise decision considering the ship didn't have any front mounted cannons.

"Reload, quickly," she ordered, then turned to the helmsman. "Hard to starboard."

She wouldn't let them have their way so easily. She'd turn the ship parallel to their course and they could exchange shots until one of them 'sank'. She only hoped the port side cannons were reloaded in time. Or that's what she would if the ship were actually turning to starboard like she'd ordered.

"That's port!" she yelled at the helmsman. "No, don't switch directions now! It's too late for that, keeping turning to port. No! Port is the direction you were going the first time! Just turn left. You do know which way is left right?"

In the confusion, the other ship had positioned themselves directly in front of them, just as she'd hoped to avoid. It fired a pair of shots. One fell short, but the other slammed into the main mast, just above the still cowering recruit, painting it a bright shade of yellow.

The impact startled the recruit who lost his hold on the ladder and began to fall backwards. Tashigi ran beneath his path and succeeded in catching the boy, but lost her balance in the process. The two of them went sprawling, their spill sending them right into the stairwell and cartwheeling down below deck.

Her progress stopped by a wall, Tashigi quickly regained her senses and checked on the boy, seeming to have avoided anything but a few bruises herself.

"Are you injured?" she asked him.

"I think I'll be okay," he replied shakily.

Hurrying back up stairs she was dismayed to see a big splotch of purple paint right in the middle of the deck, indicating a second hit.

"Your main mast is destroyed, and your ship is sinking," the proctor announced. "What will you do?"

What could she do? It was too late to do anything. She was going to fail. The other ship was pulling up alongside them and ordering them to surrender. She supposed that was the only option she had. But before she could say anything the blond recruit from earlier spoke up.

"If our ship is sinking, then we'll just have to take theirs."

Not even waiting for her reply he ran to edge of the ship and leaped across to the other one. His actions served as a much needed wake-up call. Firming her resolve she turned to the crew.

"All hands to the life boats," she ordered. "I've got a ship to capture."

Following after the reckless recruit, she jumped across to the other ship. The defenders had pulled out their guns and were attempting to get rid of single man boarding party. But he was weaving between them faster than she would have believed possible from a recruit, and not a single shot hit. Could he be using Soru? How could anyone who had even partially mastered one of the Rokushiki have failed the exam?

But Tashigi didn't have time to consider that further. When she'd landed, two of their opponents had redirected their guns at her. Pulling her wooden sword from where it was strapped to her side, she disarmed them before either could fire, then knocked both of them out with swift blows to the back of the neck.

She quickly took out a third recruit before finding herself lacking any opponents. The rest were lying unconscious on the ground, save for the Nezumi boy, who Naruto was holding in the air by the collar of his shirt. The boy's face already swelling from whatever treatment his tormentor had given him.

"I give up!" Nezumi cried frantically. "Have mercy! Please, someone stop him!"

"That's enough," the proctor ordered him.

Complying he set the other boy down, who scurried away to hide behind the proctor.

"Does this mean we won?" Naruto asked.

"Well they certainly don't look victorious to me," the marine replied, surveying the unconscious crew around him.

"Great," Naruto replied cheerfully, then turned to address her. "Nice, job over there Tashigi. Sorry you had such a lousy crew."

"It's not your fault, Naruto." she replied graciously. "And thank you. I owe you a huge favor for today."

She meant it too. He may have just saved her career.

* * *

The day of the exam had finally come. Naruto had hardly slept the night before and had shown up a full two hours early. But now he'd finished the written portion and let himself breath normally again. He thought he had done pretty well overall. He didn't know all the answers, but most of the had been pretty easy. And besides, Kiba had assured him you could completely fail the written portion as long as you aced the combat test.

So he'd informed them his specialty was unarmed combat when asked. Then he waited for his turn with the unarmed specialist. Kiba's name came up first, and he wished his friend good luck as he departed.

Not long after that, Naruto was called, so he left for his assigned room and walked up to the examiner. For some reason, the man had a bandage across his face and resting on his nose. Had he been injured earlier?

"I'm Lieutenant Kotetsu," the man told him. "You have a couple of minutes to stretch and warm up before we start."

"Thanks," Naruto replied, deciding to do just that, still being a bit stiff from two hours of test taking.

"You have some pretty impressive people in your group," Kotetsu told him conversationally as Naruto went through his routine. "There was a boy just a couple spots before you who fought like a wild animal. Almost caught me off guard coming at me so ferociously right from the start."

"You mean Kiba?" Naruto asked. "Because if he almost caught you flatfooted, you better make sure you're prepared for me. When he fights without his dog, he's not even a challenge."

"He fights with his dog?" Kotetsu asked dubiously. "You're pulling my leg. And don't worry about me, I'm pretty sure I can handle a few more recruits today. Just come at me whenever you're ready."

He couldn't say Naruto hadn't warned him. Now to see if he could rid him of that cocky attitude. Using his Soru, he circled around Kotetsu kicking the back of his knee. Naruto was satisfied to see his leg buckle, causing him began to fall backwards.

Grabbing his arm, Naruto gave him a little help and flipped him over so he was flat on his stomach. He then stood there grinning down in appreciation of his work.

"Man, they don't even warn me they're sending over a Rokushiki user," Kotetsu mumbled before lightly hopping back to his feet. "Now, let's try that again, hopefully with a little less of me humiliating myself."

Complying, Naruto charged in again, but found his examiner ready for his speed this time. What followed was the best match Naruto had had since he'd left Leaf Island. He was pleased to see that he was a little faster than his opponent, but found it difficult to capitalize on that fact as the man was very skilled at dodging or redirecting all his blows.

But he did keep the lieutenant on the defensive for the most part, and had been able to deal with the few counterattacks that had come his way. Deciding the match had gone on long enough, Naruto made ready to use his clones. He'd see how well he could defend against five attackers at once.

"Stop!" a voice ordered forcefully before he could summon them.

Naruto and Kotetsu both dropped their guard and turned to where Lieutenant-Commander Iruka had just called out to them from the doorway.

"Aww, but I almost had him, sir." Kotetsu complained.

"You're not here to beat him, you're here to test him," Iruka declared. "And you were supposed to finish that five minutes ago. So I came to see why you're holding everyone up."

"Sorry, sir," he apologized, "I guess I just got a bit carried away."

"Well I can see why," Iruka admitted, "I don't think there's any need for further deliberation. You pass, Naruto."

"What about the written portion?" Naruto asked.

He realizing he should be pleased, but he was a bit unprepared to be so casually told of his success.

"I'll inform you of how you did later," Iruka promised, "But as I'm sure he'll be happy to tell you, Kotetsu may only be a lieutenant, but he'd one of the strongest lieutenants in the force. We certainly don't expect anyone fresh out of basic training to be able to fight evenly with him."

"I wouldn't say it was evenly matched," Kotetsu interjected, "You didn't expect me to go all out on a recruit did you, sir?"

"Hey, I didn't even use my secret weapon," Naruto countered, "You wouldn't have stood a chance if I had."

"You two can debate this later," Iruka told them, "We've held up the next examinee long enough. Congratulations again, Naruto."

Naruto left the room with a huge grin. One that he seemed to have almost perpetually for the rest of the day. It also nearly drove Kiba to murder him, at least until several hours later when it was confirmed that he too had passed.

* * *

Jiraiya sat nursing his drink. Garp was sitting beside him in the tavern they were frequenting rapidly making his way through a mound of food.. Watching his fellow Vice-Admiral eating obscene quantities of food was not how he'd planned to spend this evening. But Garp had invited him, and he rarely took no for an answer. Usually didn't even seem to hear you say the word.

"You know that blond kid who wanted to join the marines?" Garp asked without even bothering to swallow his current mouthful of food first.

"Yeah," Jiraiya replied, interest piqued.

"He just passed the Officer Exam," Garp continued, pausing his eating in a rare nod to courtesy. "And you know that thing with the ship they do?"

"The thing with the ship they do?" Jiraiya parroted. "We're in the marines, you know. You're going to have to be a bit more specific."

"You know, the test," Garp replied, "Where they fight each other with paint and stuff."

"Ah, that," Jiraiya nodded sagely.

"Well I hear the kid jumped himself onto the other ship and beat up the crew himself," Garp informed him. "That is how to win that with style. I'm really starting to like that boy."

"That's certainly interesting," Jiraiya conceded, "but beating up a dozen or so fresh recruits isn't exactly an awe inspiring feat."

"They also say he knows Soru," Garp added.

Jiraiya raised an eyebrow at that piece of intel.

"You know he reminds me of someone," he told Garp, "But I can't figure out who."

Not that he'd really bothered to think about it since he'd last seen the boy. Honestly he'd been more interested in why Garp was being so evasive about his grandson. He hadn't even been able to get more out of him than his name. And considering how bad Garp was at keeping a secret there had to be something to it.

"That's probably because he's Minato's boy," Garp explained.

"Minato had a kid?!" Jiraiya shouted drawing disapproving glances from those around him.

"Does everyone I know secretly have children?" Jiraiya asked more calmly.

"I've decided I'm going to train him," Garp declared, ignoring his questions. "And not that pointless stuff they'll do at the academy. Real training."

"While I agree giving him some extra training is a good idea, maybe I should do it. Your training tends to be a bit excessive. And I did know his father better than you."

"You can't have him," Garp replied stubbornly. "I saw him first."

"Actually, I saw him first," Jiraiya corrected.

"Really? I guess I forgot," Garp answered before bursting out into laughter and taking another bite of food.

"But you still can't have him," Garp insisted, once again not seeming to care his mouth was otherwise occupied with chewing.

Jiraiya decided to cave. When Garp got like this, there was no point arguing with him. He just hoped Minato's son survived his attention. Minato's son. The notion still seemed so strange. Even if he was younger than he looked, he would have been at least a few years old when Minato died.

So why hadn't he ever mentioned him? He'd never even heard Minato mention a girl he had his eyes on. Maybe he didn't know he was a father? A plausible explanation, even if it seemed to go against Minato's character. But his gut told him there was more to it than that.

Jiraiya didn't like secrets. And between this one and Garp's grandson he now he had two of them to gnaw away at him. He'd have to do something about that.

* * *

**AN**

In case anyone didn't recognize the name, Tashigi is the girl with the sword who works with Smoker. The one who looks like Zoro's dead girlfriend. Also, Kotetsu is a Chuunin from Naruto. He's an unimportant character whose name I had to look up, and don't expect to see him again. It was just a minor part that I figured might as well be another Naruto cameo.

Not much else to say for this chapter except for the standard groveling for reviews and reminder that, yes, I actually _**like**_ criticism, if you have any to offer.


	4. Chapter 4

**Edit 5-6-10: Now with the line breaks eaten by this annoying website that won't even let me enter its name into the story without removing it.  
**

Carrying his box of possessions, Naruto left the barracks that had been his home for last month. He'd spend the next eleven at the Marine Officer Academy. And whether out of kindness or coincidence, he'd still be rooming with Kiba at his new location.

Not that he'd mind meeting new people, but he'd become fast friends with the other boy. He'd even gotten used to having Akamaru around, despite the rather cramped state that came from having such a large dog in an already small room.

Turning a corner, he found himself face to face none other than Garp. Quickly he set down his box and saluted the man, expecting him to continue on his way. Instead he just stood there examining Naruto.

"You know any of the Rokushiki other than Soru?" Garp asked him out of nowhere.

"I know the theory behind all of them," Naruto answered, "But I'm afraid I haven't mastered any others yet."

"Then I suggest you learn Tekkai quickly," the large Vice-Admiral told him.

"Is there any reason?" Naruto asked curiously. "I was actually working on Shigan next."

"Tekkai, Naruto, it has to be Tekkai," Garp insisted, then walked off without an explanation.

What had that been about? Naruto didn't have a clue. Still, he could boast to Kiba later that Garp himself was giving him advice on training. That gave him pleasant thoughts as he picked up his box and continued to navigate towards the academy. He was crossing a training field near his destination when he saw a flash of something out of the corner of his eye.

Almost as soon as he'd noticed there was a loud impact directly in front of him, and Naruto found himself pelted with chunks of earth that had been thrown up by it. Quickly overcoming his surprise, he looked in the small crater to see what had caused it and was intrigued to see a cannonball. He hadn't walked into an artillery practice zone had he?

Looking toward the direction it had come from, he didn't see any cannons. Just a single man standing on a nearby hill. Make that a very familiar old man who was waving at him.

"Tekkai, Naruto, Tekkai!" Garp yelled loud enough for Naruto to hear clearly even from a distance.

That would have to be a pretty powerful Tekkai to withstand a blow like that. Judging by the crater, it had a lot more force behind it than a cannon would impart. And Garp had thrown it? Just how strong was he?

It was then Naruto noticed the man lifting another cannonball from a small stack beside his feet. He hurled it and Naruto instinctively leaped to the side, seeing the metal sphere pass right through where he'd just been standing.

That could have killed him! What kind of homicidal maniac was this man? But seeing him reaching once again for his pile of death, Naruto dropped his box and dashed full speed toward the entrance to the academy's dorms. He had to dodge three more assaults, but slid through the door safely, panting and sweating more from the adrenaline than the actual exertion.

"Naruto?" a voice asked from beside him. "Is something going on out there?"

He realized he wasn't alone in the hallway he'd just entered, as the blue haired girl from that naval exercise was standing next to him. Tashigi, he believed her name was. But how to answer her question?

He wasn't about to go around raving to everyone that a legendary hero had gone crazy and was trying to kill him. He'd be the one locked up in an asylum somewhere.

"Uh, just getting some exercise," he lied, trying to sound as natural as possible. "I passed the Officer Exam so I'm moving in here today."

"That's great to hear," she told him. "I'm really more surprised you failed the first time."

"Ah, that's a long story," Naruto replied sheepishly.

"Well, I wish we could talk more, but I'm just leaving," Tashigi informed him, pointing to a satchel she had slung over her shoulder. "I already graduated just received my first assignment."

"Ah, good luck with that," he replied a bit enviously, "I wish I were going with you."

"Ah, I'm already late," she declared and then brushed past him to hurry out the door.

Naruto watched her go worrying briefly that she was about to be crushed by a cannonball. But she continued without incident. Maybe that meant Garp was gone. He did still need to go back and get his box of possessions. Deciding to play it safe, he summoned a clone which he sent outside to look for any sign of Garp.

It was only a few feet from the entrance when a cannonball flew into its head from directly above, destroying the clone and smashing into path beneath it.

"That's a nice trick, Naruto," a voice called out from the roof.

Yeah … he'd go back for the box later. Turning from the door, he continued on until he located his new room. It was a bit larger than his previous one, and included a pair of desks to go with the beds. Well, he'd better get to work practicing his Tekkai if he wanted to survive to see his graduation.

He hadn't attempted Tekkai in a while, but in concept it was pretty simple. You had to tense your muscles in just the right fashion and will them into becoming as hard as iron. In practice, even the slightest wavering in your will could cause the technique to fail, and crack your defense.

Summoning a clone he prepared his body and nodded for the clone to start. He watched the blow heading for his stomach, trying to focus his will even harder on its intended destination.

He felt the impact of the fist then doubled over as the blow to his gut knocked the wind out of him. Naruto saw his clone looking down at him sheepishly as he was recovering from the assault. Not being deterred he stood back up and resumed his previous stance.

"Again," he ordered firmly.

And that was what Kiba found him still doing when his friend walked in the door a few minutes later. He was already sporting bruises all over his body, having tried a number of different targets. Not only to see if he had better luck there but also to avoid assaulting already abused body parts.

"What exactly are you doing?" Kiba asked dumbfoundedly.

Akamaru had followed the boy inside and seemed to quickly decide he did not approve of the situation. The only problem was that he couldn't seem to figure out which Naruto he should be upset with. He quickly settled on pushing his way between the two of them, and sitting there, giving both Naruto's a look that made it clear he wouldn't let them try anything.

"It's just that Vice-Admiral Garp was trying to kill me," Naruto started explaining, letting his clone vanish which seemed to calm Akamaru down.

"So you decided you'd help him out?" Kiba quipped. "There is such a thing as too much loyalty."

"Anyway, what do you think all those cannonballs outside are for?" Kiba asked, probably thinking he was changing the subject. "I mean there's even one stuck right outside the main entrance."

"That was courtesy of Garp," Naruto answered. "He wants me to learn Tekkai, an ability to make your muscles as hard as iron. The cannonballs seem to be his idea of motivation."

"Are you serious?" Kiba asked dubiously.

"I'm afraid so," Naruto confirmed. "But I'm not exactly having much luck here. I may not even have the physical conditioning for the technique yet."

"Well, it doesn't sound like the sort of technique you can learn overnight," Kiba consoled him.

"But my life may depend on me doing just that," he replied bitterly.

* * *

And so his life at the Marine Officer Academy began. Naruto had to send clones to all his classes to avoid death by Garp. The Vice-Admiral certainly hadn't given up on his 'training.' Thankfully he remembered everything his clones experienced, as many of the lessons were quite interesting.

He particularly enjoyed studying military tactics. They also were getting more real combat training. Sure the unarmed training was too basic to be of any use, but they also trained in the basics of guns, swords, and artillery.

Meanwhile the real Naruto hadn't left the dorms since he'd entered on the first day. He'd spent some of the pay he'd received when he completed basic to buy himself weights to train with. But even as his strength grew, he was frustrated by the slow progress he'd been making over the months.

He'd actually activated Tekkai on numerous occasions now. But he still couldn't reliably use it. And even at his best, it wouldn't be strong enough to stop one of Garp's cannonballs.

And on top of everything else, he was sick of being interrupted from his training by the memories of his head being smashed in by a high velocity iron projectile, whenever Garp took out one of his clones.

The only good thing to come out of this is that he did get some real experience patching holes on a ship. As Garp didn't let the risk of damage to a marine vessel deter his efforts, and they trained on ships fairly regularly.

At least he got breaks on occasion. Garp wasn't always in Marinford. Sometimes his clones would go weeks without being bothered. And over time his skill at Tekkai became both stronger and more reliable. He still remained hesitant to put it to the test. Even a small mental slip could cause the skill to drop. And there was nothing like having a cannonball hurtling at you to make you lose your focus.

But it was during the tenth month of his schedule eleven at the academy that a particularly long absence from Garp finally convinced Naruto to risk going outside and getting his real body some much needed sun.

He was lined up next to the other officer trainees waiting for the instructor to arrive. The rest of them had all long since learned to give him a wide berth, creating a very noticeable break in the line on either side of Naruto. A fact that was picked up by Lieutenant-Commander Iruka, who happened to be walking by them that day.

He didn't usually hang around the academy, dealing more with the enlisted recruits. But whatever caused him to be walking past that day, their odd formation drew his attention. After pausing to examine it curiously, he approached them.

"Didn't anyone ever teach you how to form a line?" he asked derisively. "Straighten this mess up immediately."

There were some nervous fidgets, but no one complied with his order, a fact that didn't look to sit well with the young officer. Moving over to the trainee to Naruto's right, he got directly in the young man's face.

"I gave you an order," he said harshly, then without waiting for a reply turned to his left and began walking back toward Naruto.

But Naruto wasn't paying much attention to Iruka any longer, as he'd spotted something else that sent a chill down his spine. Off to the left, standing on top of a nearby building, stood Garp, having chosen the worst possible time to return.

He was already preparing a throw, and Naruto made ready to dodge. But before he could, he realized Iruka was once again next to him, and would be directly in the cannonball's path should Naruto move out of the way.

Not having any choice, he instead took a wide stance and prepared to put his training to the test. In a flash, the large metal object slammed into his chest, sending Naruto's whole body backward with the force. He crashed into Iruka with enough momentum left to knock the both of them into the ground.

Naruto took only a moment to regain his bearings. Upon doing so, he realized he now held the iron sphere in his hands, and none of his bones seemed to be broken. He was in more than a little pain, but it didn't appear to be anything serious. Climbing to his feet Iruka did the same a moment later, looking completely shocked.

"What was that?" he all but yelled. "Is that a cannonball in your hands?"

"Nice catch, Naruto!" Garp shouted from his position on the roof.

"This explains why explains why everyone was keeping their distance," Iruka muttered, having more or less deduced what was going on. "Isn't something being done to stop this?"

"Well, it's been going on since I started and I haven't been hurt yet," Naruto boasted, proud of his accomplishment and not wanting to admit that this was the first time he'd actually taken a hit.

"Still, I'll be filing a report on this incident immediately," Iruka promised.

So saying he began to walk off, keeping a wary eye on Garp as he did. The Vice-Admiral just waved cheerfully to him as he left.

* * *

With his newfound confidence from that incident, Naruto began venturing outside himself regularly. But if Iruka did file a report, it hadn't done any good. Naruto had faced three more of Garp's assaults over the next month. And Naruto was proud to say his Tekkai had protected him on each occasion.

So with his training nearly complete, he found himself once again preparing for the naval combat simulation that he'd first done at the end of basic training. Only this time, he'd be the one in charge of the crew. He was especially looking forward to the exercise as he'd been paired against Kiba. Sure they were still good friends, better than ever in fact. But that didn't mean he wouldn't enjoy proving his own superiority.

And he got off to a good start. His crew was far more competent than the one he'd served with when he last did this. The anchor was raised, and the ship took off smoothly. At Naruto's direction, the helmsman turned the ship to port, the direction he knew the other ship would be waiting. That was when he saw him. Garp was standing back on shore looking at him intently.

But he wasn't very concerned with Garp's attacks anymore. He'd just deal with this and move on. But a moment after Garp threw the cannonball, Naruto realized it wasn't heading for him. Whether through bad aim or deliberate action, Naruto quickly calculated its trajectory would cause it to land a half dozen feet to his right, putting a hole in the ship in the process.

No, he wasn't going to let the man ruin this for him. Not sparing a moment to second guess himself, he ran directly into its path. Naruto only had a brief instant to prepare himself, but got his Tekkai up just in time to protect him as the momentum of the iron object sent him sliding across the deck.

He let himself breathe a sigh of relief at his success when he felt the railing hit the back of his legs bringing a jolting halt to their progress. Unfortunately the upper half of his body continued merrily on its way spilling him over the edge and sending him plummeting into the water.

Naruto could now confirm first hand that those who had eaten a devil fruit couldn't swim. What was worse, it felt like the ocean was draining the very strength from his body. But very shortly after his own decent, he saw another body dive into the water, one he recognized as the proctor. The man pulled him up, lifting his head above the water and allowing Naruto to gasp for air.

One of the recruits had already thrown a rope into the water which the proctor grabbed and used to climb back to the ship, carrying Naruto with him.

"Just hold on," the proctor said worriedly after gently laying him on the deck. "We're going to get you to a doctor."

"No, I'm fine," Naruto told him, strength already returning to him now that he was out of the sea water.

"Don't lie to me," the man berated him, "You were just hit by a cannonball, for goodness sake. You were all but dead in the water when I got to you."

"Really I'm fine," he insisted, climbing easily to his feet to prove it. "I couldn't swim because I'm a devil fruit user."

"Captain, the other ship is dead ahead," a recruit called out from the crow's nest, interrupting further debate.

Hmm, Garp may be a jerk, but he had given Naruto an idea.

"Keep our course heading straight for the other ship," Naruto ordered the helmsman.

Then summoning four clones, he helped them all gather up the paint cannonballs into a big pile on the prow of the ship. The crew looked on with suitably awed expressions. His actions also served to convince the proctor that he really was going to be okay.

Lifting one of the mock cannonballs experimentally, he tossed it off to the side to gauge his distance, finding himself pleased with the result. He was no match for Garp, but these paint balls were much lighter than a real cannonball. And thanks to his months of strength training, it seemed his range was a fair bit longer than a cannon's.

So he waited until Kiba's ship had just passed within that range and then opened fire. With Naruto and four clones throwing as fast as they could, it looked almost as if a storm of giant rainbow hailstones was falling on the other ship. When he stopped, it was clear to the naked eye the ship had received a number of direct hits.

"I guess that means we win," he announced jovially to his crew.

* * *

"Did you really have to show off so much, Naruto?" Kiba complained from beside him. "What exactly could I do to respond to that?"

"You still haven't let that go?" Naruto asked. "If anything you should be glad I did that. Like you said, what could you have done? There's really nothing they could fault you for. It would have looked a lot worse for you if I'd won with conventional tactics."

"And what makes you so sure you would have won?" his friend replied petulantly.

"Look, we both graduated, so let's just leave it at that and enjoy the moment," Naruto told him diplomatically.

To his great pleasure, Kiba took his advice, and they soon filed into the auditorium where their graduation ceremony was about to take place. Finding their seats they waited as the rest of the graduates made their way in, along with a number of family members taking up seats in the back.

Soon the ceremony began, and Naruto was thrilled to see Fleet Admiral Sengoku himself giving the speech.

"You're all here today because you chose to begin a noble career path," Sengoku orated. "And now, thanks to your year of hard ... work ..."

His words trailed off at the end as he noted Vice-Admiral Garp making his way onto the stage carrying a large box.

"Garp, what are you doing here?" Sengoku demanded of him.

"I'm going to let you finish," Garp replied, "But Naruto doesn't graduate unless I say so."

"That's not your decision to make," Sengoku replied angrily. "Now get off the stage this instant."

But Garp ignored the order and set the box down, opening it to reveal that it was full of cannonballs.

"Consider this your real final exam," Garp called out to him. "And you better not dodge any of these."

Naruto was unsurprised to see all the other graduates had already vacated the area. Even Kiba, who had been sitting right next to him was nowhere in sight. This wasn't going to be simple. He'd never tried to take more than one of these at a time, and the range between them was much less than ever before as well. But his pride wouldn't let him back down now.

Naruto crossed his arms in front of him and braced for the impact. The first one hit his right forearm, and Naruto could swear he felt his arm about to snap just before the pressure subsided and the ball fell to the ground. The seat behind him was helping prevent his body from sliding backward from the impact, not that he'd have minded a little extra distance.

Almost as soon as the first attack had finished, the second struck him dead center on his forehead. Naruto wondered briefly how he'd been able to protect himself when there wasn't exactly a lot of muscle up there.

But he ignored the thought and the new ringing in his ears. And a good thing he had as he regained control of his Tekkai just in time for the third cannonball, which landed directly in his gut.

It forced him to exhale his breath, but he'd prevented it from doing more than that. The next projectile came so quickly gravity had yet to begin to assert itself over the previous ball. It struck him in his lower right leg, but he stood firmly, refusing to lose his balance because the next one …

Actually, there wasn't a next one. Sengoku had wrestled Garp to the ground and was holding him there with his arms pinned behind him.

"Congratulations to all of you," Sengoku declared, clearly still focused more on his struggle with Garp. "You're now officially commissioned ensigns in the Marine Force. Dismissed."

Meanwhile, Garp was filling the auditorium with his raucous laughter. He'd also managed to free one his arms which held out in a thumbs up sign.

"You pass, Naruto," he announced loudly. "Now go out there and teach those pirates to fear the marines."

* * *

"So where do you want to get assigned?" Kiba asked.

After the graduation mess had been sorted out, they'd been directed to a building where assignments were being given to the new officers. Naruto and Kiba were currently on their way there. And seeing how much of an impact this would have on their lives, they understandably had little else on their minds.

"Hopefully somewhere on the grand line," Naruto replied. "And out hunting pirates, not stuck in a base."

"I don't know," Kiba answered, "It might be easier to stand out and rise through the ranks somewhere else. You know, come back to the Grand Line when you have your own ship or something."

"Maybe for you, but I'm good enough to get noticed no matter where I go," Naruto quipped.

"You talk big now, but I'll bet you three months salary I make captain before you do," Kiba challenged.

"You're on," Naruto replied. "And I'm not going to let you back out of that."

Coming to the building they'd been directed to, Naruto entered and quickly moved to the rear of a small line that had already formed, Kiba falling in place behind him. It was only a short wait until he stood in front of the desk that belonged to a silver haired young officer. Lieutenant-Commander Mizuki according to a nameplate on the desk.

"Name please," he ordered in tone that clearly showed he would rather be anywhere but here.

"Namikaze Naruto," he supplied.

"Namikaze, huh?" Mizuki responded raising an eyebrow.

"I take it you've heard of my dad, Admiral Minato," Naruto said proudly.

"You mean Commodore Minato," Mizuki corrected disdainfully. "They may have tried to spare his son the news, but he was demoted posthumously."

"He's still an Admiral as far as I'm concerned," Naruto snapped back at the man. "He didn't deserve to be demoted for giving his life to save his village."

"Disobeying a direct order and dereliction of duty are serious offenses," Mizuki said coldly. "We'd received intelligence that Shanks of the Yonkou was in East Blue and had been seriously wounded. Your father was supposed to be part of a task force sent to capture the man."

Mizuki paused and stared at the fuming Naruto as if to make sure his words were sinking in.

"But because he refused that order," Mizuki continued, "Shanks was able to escape."

Naruto had a retort ready, but Kiba came to his defense and spoke first.

"You can't blame a man for caring about his own home and family. Or for choosing them over some pirate who seems content to stay in the New World fighting other pirates over One Piece."

"And how many law abiding citizens can't sleep each night because he's still out there?" Mizuki asked. "How many have become inspired to take up a life of piracy because he seems to be able to get away with it?"

Mizuki appeared to realize they were causing a scene and holding up a line that was still growing behind the two young officers he was arguing with. Rifling through his papers, he pulled one out.

"I believe I have just the assignment for two officers who show questionable judgment," he said with a self-satisfied smirk. "There's a Captain Morgan looking for some fresh blood. I've heard he's quite strict with his subordinates, so he shouldn't give you many opportunities to cause trouble. And what trouble could you really cause in East Blue?"

Quickly writing down their assignments in his records, he held out two sheets of paper.

"Your ship leaves tonight. All the details are right here." he informed them. "Unless you feel your father isn't the only one who's too good to follow orders."

Naruto snatched the papers from his hand, spun around and stormed back outside, Kiba following right behind him. Not his first choice of what to do with the papers Mizuki had been holding out. But that poor excuse for a marine was probably itching for him to try something he could charge them over.

* * *

Naruto leaned over the rail of the ship, staring forlornly as Shell Island came into view. He let out another sigh at being stuck with this assignment.

"Stop moping already," Kiba told him. "This might not be all bad, and at least you've got a friendly face with you."

"Have you ever considered I might be sick of seeing your face?" Naruto muttered sullenly.

"Hey now," Kiba snapped back, "I'm just trying to cheer you up, no need to bite my head off."

"I know," Naruto said half apologetically "It's just we're stuck here in East Blue. The weakest of the seas."

"Do you know where East Blue pirate captains come from?" Naruto asked.

"No, where?"

"They're deck hands or cabin boys from pirate crews on other seas that were too weak for even that job," Naruto answered. "So they come to East Blue and gather up a bunch of buffoons impressed just by the fact that they've been on a real pirate ship. Then they all go off and cause more mischief than actual harm."

"Now you're exaggerating," Kiba admonished, "Even East Blue has to have _some_ decent pirates."

"I doubt it," Naruto replied.

But despite Naruto's words, Kiba had somehow succeeded in cheering him a bit. Maybe he just needed to vent.

"You were right about the friendly face though," Naruto added, "It is nice to have Akamaru along, right boy?"

Akamaru gave a quick bark as if in assent and Naruto rewarded him by scratching behind the large dogs ears. Kiba for his part chose to ignore the veiled insult directed at him.

Well, they'd soon learn in more detail if there were any redeeming qualities to this assignment, as they were pulling in to the dock right at that moment. After they'd departed the ship, they were directed toward a dark skinned marine who was busy yelling at a number of other marines around him. They approached him and stood waiting for him to take notice, not wanting to interrupt his tirade.

"I thought I told you to get rid of that pirate ship we impounded," he shouted. "So why is it still sitting here taking up space in the dock?"

"Sorry sir," the target of his ire replied, "I'm just not sure what to do with it."

"I don't know," the first man said, "Find someone to buy it, take it out to sea and set it on fire, I don't really care, just someone get rid of it."

The man saluted and walked off without debating the matter further.

"Can I help you?" he asked impatiently, turning to where they'd been waiting.

"We've been ordered to report to Captain Morgan," Naruto replied.

"Oh the new recruits," he replied. "I'd forgotten you were coming. But unless you feel like paying him a visit in his prison cell, you'll have to forget about your orders. I'm Commander Ripper, the one in charge of dealing with the mess he left me."

He sat looking at them for a moment as if trying to figure out what to do with them.

"I'm really busy right now, so why don't you go have a look around town," he suggested, "If you find me in a couple of hours or so, hopefully I'll have a few minutes to get you set you up with some quarters."

The commander had already turned to another marine, so Naruto just saluted and walked off, Kiba mirroring him, and Akamaru bringing up the rear.

"So, anywhere in particular you want to go?" Kiba asked him.

"Actually, there is," Naruto replied. "I want to go get a closer look at that pirate ship he was talking about."

"That's fine with me," Kiba answered, "but why do you want to do that?"

"Because I plan to take it," Naruto declared, unable to completely hide a devious smirk he was developing.

"You plan to what?" Kiba asked incredulously, looking around to make sure no one else was in range to overhear.

"You heard me," Naruto replied. "I plan to sail off with the ship and go pirate hunting. You're welcome to come with me, if you'd like."

"Do you know how much trouble that could get us in?" Kiba queried.

"Commander Ripper did order someone to get rid of it," Naruto pointed out. "So as I see it, we're just following orders."

"You don't actually think they'll buy that do you?" his friend argued.

"Look," Naruto told him firmly. "I know this is crazy and impulsive, and I'll probably regret it in the morning. But I just have the feeling that this is my chance. And that if I don't take it I'm going to be stuck here doing menial tasks instead of out there making a doing something worthwhile. Now I don't know about you, but I joined the marines to make a difference."

Kiba stood there deliberating for almost half a minute before he finally broke into a smile.

"Oh, why not?" He finally said. "At our court-martial I'll just tell them it was all your idea. What do you say Akamaru, are you in?"

In reply the oversized canine began trotting over to the edge of the docks that held their target. The three of them hid themselves around the corner of a warehouse, hoping that the dock would clear itself of people if they waited long enough.

While they were waiting they got a good look at the ship. It was a decent sized ship which looked able to easily support a crew of a dozen or so. The ship itself was very plain in design, but seemed to be solid construction. Maybe a stolen merchant ship. Or given that this was East Blue, more likely just a bunch of merchants that decided to repaint their ship and call themselves pirates.

It was a dark green in color with black sails, and there was a flag tied to the main mast with the ubiquitous skull and crossbones of a pirate ship. The skull had a green frog about half its own size of sitting on top of it. Yeah, that would really strike fear into the hearts of those who witnessed it.

"That's a pretty big ship for just the three of us," Kiba pointed out. "It's going to be difficult to handle."

You're forgetting who you're dealing with," Naruto reminded him.

"Oh yeah," Kiba responded. "That's a really useful power you have."

The commander had already departed, and soon the ship that brought them left as well, leaving the dock deserted. Making use of the opportunity, they hurried to the ship and climbed aboard. Naruto immediately summoned four clones and sent them to work preparing the ship to set sail.

The real Naruto took the helm and it didn't take long until the ship began to move away from the port. But it wasn't until the island had faded out of sight that Naruto allowed himself to breathe a sigh of relief.

"Even I didn't expect to be captain of my own ship this soon," he admitted.

"Hey, why do you get to be the captain?" Kiba asked.

"This was my idea," Naruto pointed out. "And if that's not enough for you I have a devil fruit power. The captain is always the one with the cool power. But you can be my first mate if makes you feel better."

"What does devil fruit powers have to do with anything?" he argued. "Even Akamaru has a devil fruit power."

"Good point," Naruto admitted. "You can be my first mate, Akamaru."

Akamaru barked cheerfully and ran over to stand next to Naruto.

"You traitor!" Kiba snarled accusingly, but Akamaru didn't seem phased at all.

"Looks like you're outvoted," Naruto told him.

"Fine," Kiba conceded, "but you two better find someone else to pull you out of the water if you ever fall in."

Naruto could feel the thrill of adventure waiting for him. And despite their banter, he could tell even Kiba was getting into the spirit of things. He turned the ship west, toward the setting sun and, eventually, the Grand Line. Any pirates out there better hope they didn't have the misfortune of crossing his path.

* * *

**AN**

Well, hopefully this chapter didn't seem too rushed. But I didn't want to draw that year out too many chapters. Now the real story is ready to begin. And I've got news about the next chapter that should please some of you. In it, Naruto will have his first encounter with the Straw Hat Pirates.

There should also be a lot more action from here on out, as well. And don't think for a moment I'll forgo adding to Naruto's two man, one dog crew. You might be able to guess some of those who will join him over time, but I think at least a couple will be surprise you.

Oh, and before I forget, due to the surprisingly positive reception I've received for this story, and how much I'm enjoying writing it myself, I'm officially putting Clan Loyalty on hold to continue focusing on Naruto the Marine.

Finally, whether you liked the chapter or not, I strongly encourage you to share your thoughts and opinions with me.


	5. Chapter 5

**Edit 5-6-10: Now with the line breaks eaten by this annoying website that won't even let me enter its name into the story without removing it.**

"Pirates dead ahead," one of Naruto's clones called out from the crow's nest.

That hadn't taken long, it was less than a day from when they'd set sail. Taking up a spare telescope, Naruto looked through to examine the pirates himself. He could just make out the skull and crossbones painted on their sails.

And oddly enough that's all there was to the design. Just a standard skull and crossbones. Usually each pirate crew added their own touch to make the design unique, but there didn't seem to be any such variation on this flag.

He didn't recognize any pirates who used that design either. And he'd made sure to do research on all East Blue bounties before he shipped out here. And if they didn't have a bounty, that meant this fight was unlikely to be even mildly interesting. Still, it'd be one less pirate crew on the loose.

Naruto set course for the enemy ship, which obligingly was moving toward them as well. The ship only had two cannons, one mounted on either side. He had a clone stationed at each in case they ended up exchanging shots.

But the other ship was content to simply continue their approach, so Naruto held off on the shooting as well. As the ships pulled up next to each other, Kiba and Naruto stood at the starboard railing getting a lock at the other crew.

There were about twenty or so men armed with pistols and cutlasses. They were led by a captain who looked like a walking stereotype. He stood about average height and build, with a long scraggly black beard, a wooden leg, a hook for one of his hands, and an eyepatch covering an eye. He even had a parrot sitting on his shoulder.

"Let me handle this," Naruto told Kiba. "This fight will be dull enough even without help."

"Only if you let me and Akamaru have the next ship," Kiba answered.

"Fair enough," he agreed.

"Arr, surrender yer ship if ye wish to live," the pirate captain ordered.

"You're the one that should surrender," Naruto yelled back. "It'll be less painful for you."

"Ye hear that lads?" the leader of the pirates asked. "He wants us to surrender. Why I have more reason ta fear me own mother than I do these bilge rats."

His crew laughed appreciatively at his barb, some of them throwing in jeers of their own. Naruto just cracked his knuckles in reply and jumped across to the other ship.

* * *

"Still think your mother is scarier than we are?" Naruto asked smugly.

The captain held the honor of being the only pirate left conscious, the rest of them being sprawled all over their ship's deck where Naruto had left them. And the honor was somewhat dubious in nature given he was currently bound in rope after having received a thorough trouncing. And the way his one good eye was starting to swell up, he was at real risk of being temporarily blinded.

"Arr, ye beat me soundly," the one legged captain answered, "I be man enough to admit it. But these wounds are nothing compared to me last encounter with me mother. A terrifying woman she be."

"What are we going to do with them?" Kiba asked, having joined Naruto on the other ship. "I don't feel like sharing our ship with twenty captive pirates. And how are we supposed to turn them in when we're trying to avoid other marines?"

"I've already thought about that," Naruto answered. "We can leave the crew on their ship and have three of my clones sail it into a marine base. Once I've handed them over, the clones can just disperse themselves."

"Can they travel that far from you?" Kiba asked curiously.

"I've never tested it quite so far," Naruto admitted. "But they've worked fine at a pretty decent range, so I have no reason to think it won't work. But we can keep the captain on our ship for now, just to be safe."

"Sounds good," Kiba agreed, "But before we send them off, let's help ourselves to some of their food and water. There wasn't exactly a large supply on the ship when we left."

"Good idea," he replied. "If we run into pirates often enough, we won't even need to risk stopping at a port to resupply. I just hope some of them put up a little more of a fight than this."

* * *

"Do you think they're pirates?" Naruto asked, handing Kiba his telescope.

Kiba peered through it at the vessel that was approaching them, a rather elegantly designed ship that looked to be quite expensive.

"Well, they don't look too friendly," Kiba answered. "Its pretty clear they intend to fight us. But I've never heard of pirates being so well dressed. And there's nothing about the ship that would suggest they're up to no good."

"Maybe they think we're pirates," Naruto suggested. "We may have taken down that stupid frog flag, but black sails are certainly suspicious."

Still confused as to what would be the appropriate course of the action, they waited until the ships were close enough to communicate.

"I know the black sails are odd, but we're not pirates, we're marines." Naruto yelled out to them. "See we're even wearing our uniforms."

"That's too bad for you, because we are pirates," a voice replied.

While most of the crew could simply be considered well dressed, the owner of the voice's outfit was nothing less that flamboyant. He would wager the white shirt and dark pants of his were made of silk. Silk wasn't cheap as it was and beyond that his shirt was embroidered with a pattern of thorns that wrapped around his arms.

"You are in the presence of the most stylish pirates in East Blue," the man Naruto could only assume to be the captain boasted. "Cower in fear or gaze in awe as you hand over your valuables. Whichever you prefer."

"Come on Akamaru," Kiba called to his canine companion. "I believe it's our turn."

* * *

Naruto led the newly captured pirate captain below deck, where their first captive was still tied up. There were six rooms down here that were designed as sleeping quarters. Five of them made for two crewman and a larger room for the captain.

Considering how often they were likely to have captives, Naruto would have to see about converting one of them to a cell at some point. But for now he was just leaving them tied up in the central area under guard from Akamaru. And whenever Akamaru needed a break, his clone would stand in for him.

But he already had three clones taking care of their most recently captured ship along with its crew. So using his last one to guard prisoners left just Kiba to help him sail the ship. But as he brought his new captive below, the man immediately noticed his fellow prisoner, and Naruto saw a recognition flash in his eyes.

"I should have known you'd already be captured, Harold," he declared as Naruto began to secure his bonds. "You always were a lousy pirate."

"Arr, I told ye a thousand times, Julian" Harold responded in annoyance, "don't call me by that name any longer. I be Captain Scourge now. And I'll have ye know that there were a dozen men on this ship when we clashed. I killed eight of them meself includin their captain. And here ye be having lost to their two young cabin boys."

"That's a lie, like everything else about you," Julian retorted.

Naruto realized he should probably get back above deck, but he was enjoying the argument too much for the moment, and decided he could spare a few minutes.

"It may be I exaggerate a bit," Harold admitted. "Any pirate worth his salt enjoys a weavin a good tale. But what about me could be called a lie?"

"Where do I start?" Julian asked melodramatically. "Your eye works just fine under that patch. You're holding that hook in a perfectly good hand you're hiding in your sleeve. And that parrot you usually keep on your shoulder is stuffed."

"Aye, that may be true," Harold granted, "but me peg leg be real, and the rest be real enough in spirit."

"Whatever you say Fakebeard." Julian mocked.

"Hey now," Harold replied, sounding truly hurt by the remark. "It don't be right to make fun of a man's condition what doesn't let him grow a proper pirate like beard. At least I be tryin to look the part of a pirate."

"A pointless endeavor that is," Julian declared. "You're just blindly sticking to stupid traditions. You need to realize that being a pirate doesn't preclude one from being elegant."

"Here's what I think of ye and yer elegance," Harold shouted.

Then proving Julian's earlier claim, he wriggled beneath his bindings and managed to toss his hook at where Julian sat a short distance away. His aim was true, and the point of his hook snagged the other man's shirt along the side of his chest tearing a hole in it.

"My designer shirt!" Julian cried out in horror. "Do you have any idea how much this cost?! And look at this, I'm bleeding! If I scar, it'll ruin my perfect chest. I'll never be able to visit a beach again."

Finally deciding he'd had enough, Naruto went back above deck, leaving Akamaru to look on in amusement as the two captains slid along the floor and began attacking one another as best they could while tied up.

Honestly, were those two idiots even a risk to anyone? Making up his mind right then, he went back above deck and approached Kiba, who was at the helm.

"Set course for the Grand Line," he ordered. "I don't want to spend any longer in East Blue than I have to."

"Naruto, I'm begging you, change into something else," Kiba implored.

"You may not care," Naruto replied, "but I intend to stay in uniform."

"The problem is, you only brought one uniform on board," Kiba pointed out. "And if you don't change into something else soon, Akamaru and I will mutiny."

"Hey, I still bathe every day," Naruto said defensively.

"Why are you making a big deal about this?" Kiba asked. "Stealing a ship? No problem. But heaven forbid you get caught out of uniform. There are plenty of clothes left behind on the ship. You can wear your uniform again as soon as you've washed it."

"Fine," Naruto conceded.

Heading below deck, he ignored the prisoners and went to find something else to wear. After a bit of searching, he finally found a simple set of green pants and a gray shirt that seemed to be about his size. He washed up again quickly before changing into them and heading back above deck.

When he arrived, he saw Kiba looking through a telescope at some ships that were nearing.

"What do you make of this?" Kiba asked. "Four ships whose crews all look terrified of something behind them. But I don't see anyone chasing them."

"I don't know," Naruto admitted. "Let's go ask one of them."

They were able to pull their ship up next to one of the others, matching its speed and course. Naruto would have preferred a real marine ship. But it was some consolation that the one they'd ended up with was, in all honesty, a reasonably fast ship.

"Is there any trouble?" Naruto asked.

"It's Don Krieg," a passenger on the ship yelled back. "He's attacking the Baratie. We just escaped from there."

"Don Krieg huh?" Naruto muttered.

"Recognize the name?" Kiba asked.

"Yeah, he has the second highest bounty in East Blue," he replied. "He must have at least a little fight in him to earn that."

Setting course in the direction the ships had just fled from, it didn't take them long to see the floating restaurant coming up in the distance. But when he got close enough to make out details, Naruto almost did a double take.

"Krieg's ship is in pieces!" Naruto declared in surprise.

"How did that happen?" Kiba asked.

Not having any reply, Naruto simply continued to scan through the telescope for any clues. But he saw nothing that could have left such a large ship so completely destroyed. At least until one figure in particular caught his eye.

"That looks like Mihawk," he supplied for Kiba, who was still waiting on an answer. "But what would he be doing here?"

"Why don't we go find out?" Kiba asked. "You can hardly complain that meeting a member of the Shichibukai is boring."

"Let's just hope it doesn't get too exciting," Naruto responded. "If he oversteps his bounds and starts attacking civilians, we'll be obligated to stop him. Or maybe I should say try to stop him."

"You make it sound like a lost cause," Kiba complained. "Sure he's strong and all, but it'd be three against one."

"My father mentioned Mihawk more than once," Naruto explained, "He said he was a dangerous man. You shouldn't underestimate anyone my father considered dangerous. Just imagine that's a marine admiral standing there."

Kiba's face paled at the thought.

"We're not really going to try to fight him are we?" he asked nervously.

"Not if he behaves himself," Naruto answered resolutely.

He was dead serious about stepping in if the situation called for it, but he wasn't any more eager than Kiba to do so. Still, he continued his course and pulled up next to the Baratie, seeing that there was one ship that hadn't fled. A small vessel with four men on it. Although a couple of them would probably be more accurately called boys than men.

Hopping off and tying the ship to the Baratie, he saw a green haired young man approaching Mihawk. Curious as the what was going on he decided to see if anyone on the other ship had information.

"Who is that?" he questioned them. "And what does he think he's doing?"

"That's Pirate Hunter Zoro," one of them replied after turning to face his questioner. "The greatest swordsman in East Blue."

"And I'm his captain," boasted one of the younger passengers of the small vessel, a boy wearing a wide brimmed straw hat.

He looked like he was about to add something else. Instead, something behind Naruto caught his eye and his face lit up with excitement.

"That's a huuge dog!" he called out enthusiastically. "Hey Usopp, let's go pet him."

"Luffy, how can you be so carefree when Zoro is about to fight that monster?" Usopp admonished.

But the his companion ignored him, grabbing the other boy with one hand and the side of the ship with his other. Then he backed up … stretching his arm as he went? Must be another devil fruit user. Anyway, having stretched his arm to several times its original length, Luffy lifted his feet and took off as if fired from a slingshot.

He and his passenger crash landed behind him next to were Kiba and Akamaru had just gotten off the ship. Luffy seemed unphased by the impact, but the same couldn't be said for Usopp, who had yet to stand up.

But Luffy ignored that fact and proceeded to run around Akamaru excitedly examining him. Neither Akamaru nor Kiba seemed quite sure of how to react. Naruto, however, chose to turn his attention back to the two who were still on the ship.

"A pirate hunter?" he parroted. "So you're bounty hunters?"

"That's right," responded the same man who answered before. "I'm Johnny and this is Yosaku. We may not be a match for Zoro, but I'll have you know we're pretty strong ourselves."

"So what exactly is he doing?" Naruto asked, still not having received a response to his earlier question.

"Challenging him to a fight to prove he's the better swordsman, of course," Yosaku answered.

"Well you should stop him before he gets hurt," he warned them. "He may be the best swordsman in East Blue, but Mihawk is the best swordsman in the Grand Line. And you're about to learn how great the gap between those two oceans is."

"Grand Line?" Luffy asked from behind him, the word having caught his attention. "Have you been there?"

"I was born there," Naruto answered. "In fact, this is the first time I've left it."

"That's great," Luffy said energetically. "You should join my crew. I'm going there myself and you could show me around when I get there."

"You don't even know my name and you're asking me to join your crew?" Naruto replied, caught a bit off guard by the unorthodox request.

"I guess you're right," the boy admitted. "I'm Luffy, what's your name?"

"Naruto," he supplied.

"There, now you can join my crew," Luffy declared, as if it were already a done deal.

"Um … I appreciate the offer," he answered, still not sure how to react to the rather odd boy, "but I'm already captain of my own crew."

Luffy looked like he was prepared to argue further, so Naruto switched tactics and tried to distract him instead.

"Shouldn't you be more concerned with not losing the crewmen you already have?" he asked.

"Ah!" he cried out. "My navigator ran off with my ship! Wake up Usopp. We have to go after them."

While Luffy tried to shake Usopp back to consciousness, Naruto pondered his words. Wasn't that his ship over there? And why had his navigator run off with it? Maybe they hadn't agreed to join in the first place. Was this just some crazy kid who went around insisting people were part of his crew? Was he really even Zoro's captain?

Speaking of Zoro, how was the fight going? Returning his attention to the match, Naruto was disappointed to see that Luffy's distraction had caused him to miss it. Two of Zoro's swords had just been destroyed.

Normally that would leave a swordsman weaponless, but the man actually had third sword held in his mouth. That was a technique Naruto had yet to witness. He also took note of a number of wounds Zoro had received from the fight. It was clear his body must be reaching its limit.

Sheathing his final sword, Naruto was glad to see he'd realized how hopeless the fight was before he was killed. At least until he spread his arms wide, as if to invite the other man to finish him off, an invitation Mihawk appeared inclined to accept.

"Zoro!" Luffy yelled, having noticed the swordsman's predicament himself.

But his cry didn't deter Mihawk, who swung the oversized sword of his leaving a long cut down his opponent's chest. Johnny and Yosaku had already dived into the water to swim toward their wounded companion. A newly enraged Luffy, meanwhile, used that odd power of his to rocket his body toward Mihawk in an attack of his own.

The situation was rapidly spiraling out of control, and would likely lead to more needless deaths. But as long as Mihawk was the one being attacked, there wasn't anything Naruto could do. Mihawk, however, showed surprising restraint for a pirate and simply dodged Luffy's attack without retaliating. He couldn't hear what was being said, but somehow the situation was defused.

As they'd been talking, Johnny and Yosaku had dragged an astonishingly still conscious Zoro back to their ship and began to treat him. He'd give the man full credit for his fortitude if nothing else. Naruto decided to leave them. Not really able to offer any help on the medical front, he be better served to turn his attention to things he could deal with. Namely Don Krieg and his pirates.

Krieg and his crew were standing on the same large chunk of ship on which Luffy and Mihawk had just had their brief encounter, enraptured to the man by the event. He could use that get the drop on them. That was if he could get across the water between them. He estimated the distance to be right about at the limit of what he could jump.

But given what would happen if he fell short, he'd rather not risk that. He might have to give up on any hope for stealth, but moving his ship closer might be his best option. Untying the ship from the Baratie, he reboarded and began sailing toward his targets.

"Guard the civilians," he ordered Kiba as the boat began to pull away.

But he'd hardly started moving when Mihawk made another attack, further slicing up the remains of Krieg's boat and sending up a large wave. Mihawk used the opportunity to escape and Naruto saw the bounty hunters sailing off leaving their supposed captain behind.

With Mihawk no longer there, Krieg quickly turned his attention to the Baratie, and Naruto heard him shout an order to his crew, who began to swim to the other vessel en masse. The Baratie responded in a most unusual manner, a couple of large wooden platforms rising up on either side like a pair of fins for the ship.

It was a good thing he'd moved his own ship away, as the fins only just fell short of reaching the ship. But it looked like the pirates were coming to him leaving little need to chase them down. So leaving a single clone to guard the ship, he leaped onto the newly raised platform and ran to where the fighting was already starting.

"Don't underestimate our chefs!" a blonde man yelled as Naruto approached.

The man then proceeded to tear through the pirates with an impressive display of martial skill that seemed to center entirely on kicking. He was soon joined by the other chef's who also were managing to get the better of the pirates.

It looked like they might not need his help at all. Intrigued by the fight he came to a stop next to Kiba and Akamaru who were also content for now to simply watch the fight. Just then he saw two of the chefs hurtle past him. They'd been sent in that direction by a large man covered in circular pieces of armor who had just climbed out of the water. His very appearance lifted the morale of the remaining pirates.

"It's Pearl!" one cried out. "He'll teach those chefs why we're the strongest pirates in East Blue."

Pearl continued to approach the group chefs, most of whom backed off in response to his advance.

"This one looks interesting," Kiba declared. "Come on Akamaru, let's see what he can do."

His two crew members ran toward the armored pirate, who saw them coming and turned to face his attackers. Akamaru pulled out ahead of Kiba and made use of his devil fruit powers to begin his spin. Pearl braced for the impact as the large animal barreled toward him, but instead Akamaru passed just to his right, avoiding a collision.

"Looks like your pet missed," he pointed out condescendingly to a still charging Kiba.

"If you think that you may want to look behind you," Kiba shouted back.

Turning around he saw Kiba's claim hadn't been a trick, as Akamaru had reversed course and was once heading straight for him. Pearl prepared himself for the dog's attack. Unfortunately, he had apparently forgotten Kiba behind him as he found himself sandwiched between Akamaru's Tsuuga and a shoulder tackle from Kiba.

His armor proved insufficient for such an attack, shattering on both sides and not even absorbing enough force to preventing Pearl from loosing consciousness as a result of the double impact.

"He was supposed to be one of your strongest fighters?" Kiba asked, clearly disappointed. "I'm beginning to think Naruto was right about East Blue."

"Nobody move!" a new voice yelled.

The call directed his attention to a pirate who had a gun pointed directly at the head of a aging chef.

"Gin!" the blond chef from earlier yelled angrily. "What do you think you're doing?"

"I don't want you or anyone else hurt, Sanji," Gin replied. "Just leave the ship and I'll let him go."

Taking hostages, just what Naruto would expect of pirate scum. Well, he wasn't about to let them get away with it. He summoned a clone from behind Gin, one which was immediately spotted by a number of the pirates watching the scene.

But his clone, knowing it had to act quickly, grabbed Gin's arm before a cry of warning could go up and wrenched it away from his captive. Sanji was already in motion and followed up with a powerful kick to Gin's head that sent him flying away from the man he now stood protectively over.

"Thank you for help," Sanji said to the clone. "But let me handle Gin."

Naruto was inclined to grant his request. He wouldn't want anyone barging in on a fight that was personal to him. And since his clone shared his though process, it nodded its own assent a moment later.

"Look out!" Kiba yelled from nearby, and Naruto glanced over his shoulder to see a giant morning star heading right for him.

Doubting he had time to dodge, he prepared his Tekkai only to have Luffy jump into its path and sending it hurtling right back at Krieg with his bare hands. The armored pirate dodged his own weapon, which slammed into a mast that had somehow remained standing prior to that point.

But whatever luck had saved it so far clearly had run dry, as its base splintered into pieces. Then gravity took over and sent it tumbling back toward them, creating a bridge between the Baratie and the piece of ship Krieg stood on.

"What exactly is your power?" Naruto asked curiously, impressed by the display.

"I'm made of rubber," Luffy replied proudly. "Blows like that can't hurt me."

"Well, what do you say we go take down Krieg?" Naruto asked, cracking his knuckles in anticipation.

"Sounds fun," Luffy answered cheerfully.

So the two of them charged across the mast toward the captain of the pirates. In response the man lifted his shield and fired a number of wooden stakes at the two of them. Using Soru, Naruto was able to easily avoid them, and even knocked a couple out of the way that looked like they were heading for Luffy.

"Not bad," Krieg admitted as their charge neared him. "But how will you deal with this?"

He then flipped over his cape, revealing that the now outward facing side was covered in spikes, protecting him from all sides. Naruto drew up short, trying to decide how to react. His clones would dispel instantly if they tried to attack that. But if they were careful, they could grab the spikes and toss Krieg and his stupid cape around.

But his musings became moot as Luffy hadn't paused even for a second, slamming his fist right into the spikes protecting Krieg's head and knocking the man forcefully to the ground. The blood made it clear his power didn't protect him from sharp objects, and Naruto couldn't decide whether to be impressed or appalled by Luffy's attack.

But he was able to decide on a course of action. So he quickly the shield and cloak Krieg had just dropped and tossed them into the ocean. He then summoned three clones and surrounded the pirate captain, who was just recovering from the attack.

"I'll admit I hadn't expected such a reckless assault," Krieg stated. "But don't fool yourselves into thinking you have a chance. My armor is indestructible, so you two can punch away at me all day and it won't do you any good."

"Then you won't mind if I put that to the test will you?" Naruto asked, relishing the challenge.

Naruto and his clones all charged simultaneous, hitting Krieg's armor with their strongest punches. Naruto had to admit the armor was hard, as he was now feeling a pain in his knuckles. But he was more than satisfied when several cracks appeared in the 'indestructible' armor.

"How can this be?" Krieg asked in disbelief noticing the cracks himself.

"Gomu Gomu no Bazooka!" Luffy cried out in announcement of his own attack.

The double fist strike lifted him right off the ground and sent him flying backwards. Only the quick thinking of one his clones prevented Krieg from going over the edge as it jumped into his path and sent him back to the ground with a flying kick.

The force of the kick sent that clone into the ocean instead, the power of which instantly destroyed it. But that was a small price to pay to keep Krieg from escaping to where neither Luffy nor he could follow.

In addition, the further attacks on his armor had caused the cracks had spread to the point where the armor itself now shattered and fell off as Krieg slowly stood. Without its protection, the following minute must have been one of the worst of his life. Needless to say the pirate captain was no longer conscious after being subject to a brutal beating from the two devil fruit users.

Turning back to the Baratie he was expecting to receive shocked disbelief from Krieg's crew. But he was disappointed to see there wasn't a conscious pirate in sight. Just a pile of bodies were Kiba was stacking their limp forms. Even Gin had been dealt with, most likely by Sanji, who stood over the fallen man.

"Well, I think we did a pretty good job," Naruto declared proudly.

"Your power is great," Luffy replied. "You could be like a whole band by yourself."

"Except I don't know how to play any instruments," Naruto answered, again caught off guard by the odd boy's thought pattern.

"That's too bad," Luffy replied. "I need a musician in my crew."

"I'm going to take care of the pirates if you don't mind," Naruto told him, hoping to change the subjected before Luffy had a chance to fixate on convincing Naruto to join his crew again. "I'll make sure to tell them about your contribution if you're concerned about the bounty."

"I don't care about the the bounty," Luffy proclaimed matter-of-factly.

Ah, it was refreshing to see a bounty hunter who wasn't in it out of greed, even if he was a little off.

"Well then, it was nice meeting you but I guess this is where we part ways," he told Luffy offering his hand.

Luffy grasped the hand with a smile.

"I'm sure we'll see each other again in the Grand Line," he predicted.

* * *

"Some party they threw us last night, huh?" Kiba asked.

It had been quite a party. Although with how much Kiba drank, Naruto had to wonder if he really recalled that fact or just assumed to be so. He might not think so fondly of it if he had a clearer recollection of his actions.

"We did save their restaurant," Naruto reminded him. "It was kind of the least they could do."

"Pity that Luffy kid had already left though," Kiba added. "He seemed like the type that would enjoy a party. Anyway, were are we headed next?"

"To the nearest marine base," Naruto answered.

"What?" Kiba asked, probably wondering if he'd heard right. "I thought we were avoiding them."

"We don't exactly have a lot of choice," he explained. "We've got a hold filled with over fifty pirates. We'll run out of food and water in no time with that many. And there wasn't exactly enough of their ship left to use our usual methods."

"There's got to be some other option," Kiba insisted. "We could just steal the ship from the next pirates we find."

"And if we don't find one before we starve to death?" Naruto asked. "A couple of missing ensigns isn't exactly a big deal. There's a good chance that even if the base we're heading to has been informed, they've forgotten all about it."

"I still don't like it," Kiba complained.

Naruto didn't like it either dreading the moment the ocean would end. But eventually it did just that, a marine base coming into view. As his clones pulled into port and docked the ship, Naruto went down to the hold and brought up Krieg. He'd take care of the most dangerous captive first, and deal with the rest later.

Seeing Krieg again, he couldn't help but let out a small chuckle. He knew the man was strong, and not wanting to risk him breaking his bindings, he had gone a bit overboard with the rope and chains. He looked almost like a deformed mummy. His head was the only part left free, and that only if you didn't count the gag.

As there was no way the man could walk, Naruto lifted him over his shoulder and began to carry him away. Leaving Kiba and Akamaru behind, he left the ship, quickly being joined by an escort of marine guards when they recognized just who it was he bringing in.

He was actually grateful Kiba had talked him into changing out of his uniform when he had, as he'd had a chance to clean it to pristine shape. He was nervous enough about this as it was, he didn't need a filthy uniform to make him any more self conscious.

On a positive note, no one had yet brought up his escape from Shell Island. Not even after he'd led his captives into the base, setting bureaucrats scurrying trying to figure out what to do with Krieg. He was beginning to think he would get away with this. Until someone else walked into the room.

"You!" Naruto and Nezumi yelled at the same time when they'd spotted each other.

Of all the bases he could have gone to, it just had to be this one. He recalled now that Nezumi said he had plans to work in East Blue. Naruto just wished he'd thought to check which base that was.

"I heard about how you went AWOL," Nezumi said smugly, "But I never imagined I would be able to see you brought to justice myself. Fortune must be smiling on me today."

While Nezumi surely had plenty more taunts ready, he was denied the opportunity to use them as the doors burst open allowing the entry of a highly agitated man. Although clearly older, he bore a striking resemblance to Nezumi and sported a number of fresh cuts and bruises. This must be Nezumi's father, who went by the same name if his memory served.

"Father," Nezumi called out to the man, confirming their relationship. "I caught that Naruto fugitive I told you about."

"I don't have time for your childish rivalries right now," his father snapped. "There are bigger issues at stake. I need to ... is that Don Krieg?"

Naruto was suddenly grateful no one in the base had yet figured out what to do with the man. Showing off the good he'd done may put the marine captain in a better mood to be lenient.

"Yes, sir," he answered with a salute. "He's one of the pirates I've captured since I began patrolling East Blue."

"You mean to say a punk like you managed capture such an infamous pirate?" he questioned examining Naruto as if expecting this to be some big prank.

"He does have monstrous strength," his son informed him. "But that's all the more reason to lock him up. He's a menace."

"I should listen to my son. I could have you locked up right next to your prisoners," Captain Nezumi threatened. "But I think I may be better served turning one monster against another."

"Sir?" Naruto asked hoping for clarification.

"I'll let you continue on your way," he declared. "But only if you agree to hunt down a pirate by the name of Monkey D. Luffy."

"Luffy?" Naruto questioned, wondering if there was any chance he was referring to someone else by that name. "Goofy kid that wears a straw hat and has a devil fruit power that gave him a rubber body?"

"You know him?" Nezumi asked curiously.

"I ran into him once before," Naruto admitted. "But I thought he was a bounty hunter. He was with Pirate Hunter Zoro."

"Yes, he was with Zoro," Nezumi confirmed. "But only because the Pirate Hunter has turned to piracy himself. He and his crew took out Arlong, stole all of his treasure, harassed the people Cocoyashi Village, and then attacked the marine force I was leading in an attempt to restore order. I barely escaped with my life."

Inwardly Naruto was kicking himself for not figuring this out earlier. Really, a bounty hunter who didn't care about a prize like the one offered for Krieg? He just knew there was no way a pirate would be able to collect That's why he'd let Naruto take care of them.

"I'll do it," Naruto said firmly. "I'll capture Luffy and his crew."

"If you succeed I may even see about getting you pardoned for your actions," Nezumi offered. "Although I think my son here is hoping you'll fail. I guess one of the two of us is going to get our revenge."

"I'll just have to make sure it's you then, sir," Naruto replied.

* * *

Nojiko gasped at the figures she saw walking up the path to Cocoyashi Village. Arlong and his crew had just been defeated, what were three fishmen doing here? At the head of their group was a large red fishman. Normally the fishman had at least somewhat human like faces but if you buried this one up to his neck in sand, Nojiko suspected he might be mistaken for a normal fish lying on the ground.

As they approached the small group of villagers who had been chatting with Nojiko, Genzo immediately stepped in front of her protectively. Not at all frightened by his display, the leader walked up to the heavily scarred man.

"Tell me human, what happened to Arlong Park?" he asked menacingly.

"It was destroyed," Genzo answered. "And unless you want to be taken out like your leader was, I suggest you leave town and never return."

"I know it was destroyed," the fishman snapped back. "I want to know how. And where is Arlong? I'm not fool enough to fall for your transparent lie."

"Believe what you want," Nojiko yelled at him from behind Genzo. "But it's still the truth."

Enraged by her reply, Nojiko saw the fishman prepared to backhand her. She closed her eyes reflexively before hearing a large crash. Worried Genzo had just taken the blow for her, she opened her eyes only to discover see the sound had actually come from the other two fishmen.

Or more accurately, from their bodies crashing into the ground next to their leader and going limp. Her would be assaulter, now the only remaining fishman, had stopped his intended blow mid-swing, shocked by unexpectedly violent arrival of his companions.

"Back away from the villagers," a young, blond haired marine called out from behind the fishman.

Next to him stood a darker haired boy and a very large white dog. They must have all been so focused on the fishmen no one had seen them coming. Not looking at all worried by how easily his men had been defeated, the fishman pirate casually walked over to the blond marine who had just spoken.

"You may have caught my men off guard, but you'll find I'm not so easily beaten," he boasted.

"Is that so?" the marine asked almost mockingly. "Then why don't you show me what you're made of?"

"Heh, just remember that you asked for it," he replied.

Walking up to his challenger, the difference in their size became very apparent. The blond wasn't at all short by human standards, looking to be about six feet tall. But the fishman stood almost a foot taller and had to weigh at least twice as much. And he intended to take advantage of that fact, throwing his whole body into a single punch aimed at the young man's chest.

Nojiko cringed as the marine made no attempt to dodge the attack as it barreled in. But rather than breaking ribs and knocking the smaller of the combatants away, the fishman's fist halted abruptly when it struck him.

"You call that a punch?" the blond mocked, appearing completely unphased by the attack. "_This_ is a punch."

So saying, he threw a right hook at the fishman, although it almost turned into an uppercut given the differences in their height. But whatever kind of punch it was, it connecting to the side of his target's face, twisting his whole body to the side and sending him cartwheeling several yards before he came to a stop.

When it became clear that he wasn't getting up again, the villagers swarmed the marine.

"That was amazing!" one of them called out.

"That wasn't anything impressive," the darker haired boy insisted, sounding a little jealous of the attention his companion was getting. "They were all really weak. Naruto was just showing off."

"Well then, Naruto," Genzo stated walking over to the boys himself. "We're just grateful you and ..."

"Kiba," Naruto provided. "And the dog is Akamaru."

"Yes," Genzo gratefully, "that you, Kiba, and Akamaru here showed up. If there's anything we can do to repay you, just let us know."

"Actually, we're here looking for a dangerous pirate by the name of Monkey D. Luffy," Naruto told them. "We heard he and his crew caused you some trouble and we'd appreciate any information you might have on where they went. Or perhaps a description of their ship if anyone got a look at it."

The villagers quickly grew silent at the revelation that their current saviors were hunting their previous saviors.

"But Luffy is ... hey!" Genzo said.

The sentence may have made more sense if Nojiko hadn't 'accidentally' stomped on his foot rather hard part way through.

"Sorry," she pretended to apologize. "But as Genzo was saying, Luffy is very dangerous. You should avoid him for your own good."

"He doesn't worry us," Kiba boasted. " We're combat specialists from marine headquarters. You barely saw a fraction of what we can do just now."

"Is that so?" Nojiko asked sweetly. "Then did Captain Nezumi send you after Luffy?"

"That's right," Naruto confirmed. "He specially charged us with bringing Luffy to justice."

"In that case, I'll be happy to tell you what their ship looks like," Nojiko told them. "It's a large vessel, painted completely black, with blood red sails. And it must have at least two dozen cannons."

"That certainly sounds unique," Naruto answered. "Now do you have any idea where he's heading next?"

"And I don't know where they're headed, but they sailed off to the East," Nojiko lied.

"Well they're probably trying to throw off pursuit then," Naruto told his companion. "He was quite clear he was heading toward the Grand Line. We may be able to beat him to the entrance if we hurry."

Nojiko silently cursed that she hadn't been able to throw them off the trail, but at least they seemed to have believed her about the ship. But she realized there might be another way she could help her sister."

"Please, if you're going after them, take me with you," Nojiko requested.

"What are you talking about?!" Genzo yelled out in surprise. "Do you know how dangerous it would be to go with them?"

"Yes, a marine vessel is no place for a civilian," Naruto replied.

But his partner immediately pulled him to the side and began whispering furiously at him.

" ... no rule against it ... crazy not to ... hot ... just look at her ..." were some of the pieces she managed to catch Kiba saying.

It was easy to see he was trying to change Naruto's mind and exactly why he was doing so. So she did her best to smile cutely whenever they looked her way. But despite Kiba's best effort, he seemed unable to sway the other marine.

"I'm sorry, it's just too dangerous," he told her.

If he wasn't going to cave that easily then it was time for Nojiko to kick the act up a notch.

"I didn't want to tell you this," she began melodramatically, "but Luffy and his crew took my little sister. I know I may not be much help in a fight, but I ... I just can't sit here and do nothing."

A pretty good performance if she said so herself. She could see that Naruto was wavering. Now to go in for the kill. Getting down on her knees she looked up at him pleadingly and even succeeded in producing a couple of crocodile tears.

"I'm a pretty good cook," she informed them in mock desperation. "Or I could help clean. I'll find some way to contribute. Please just take me with you."

She could tell by the look on his face that she'd already won. It seemed that, like most men, he was unable to say no to a woman in tears.

"Fine," he finally answered. "We'll give you twenty minutes to gather your things and say your goodbyes. If you're not back here by then we're leaving without you."

"Thank you. You won't regret this," she told him turning to head to her house, more to hide the smirk she was struggling to suppress than out of any real hurry.

But then again, maybe she should hurry. Twenty minutes wasn't a lot of time. Not wanting to waste it, she ran back to her house and began to quickly pack her things. About a minute into the process Genzo walked in.

"What was that all about?" he asked her disapprovingly.

"You're the one who was about to declare yourself a pirate sympathizer to a couple of thugs sent by Nezumi," Nojiko fired back.

"That's not the point," Genzo answered a little sheepishly. "What makes you think going with them is a good idea? Even if you can send them on a wild goose chase, they're hardly the only marines around."

"Maybe not, but they do seem pretty strong," Nojiko argued, "And they're hunting Luffy specifically."

"And what happens if they ever find out what you're doing?" Genzo countered. "It's too dangerous."

"I'll be careful," she replied stubbornly.

They proceeded to lock stares in a contest of wills. But Genzo was the one to give up first, turning away with a sigh.

"It's alright," he told her. "I know what this is really about."

"What do you mean?" Nojiko asked in confusion.

"It's easy to see," he told her. "Your little sister is off having wild adventures, and you're still here with little more than a boring old man to keep you company. It's no wonder you'd jump at a chance to head out into the world yourself."

"You're not boring," she answered, trying to raise his spirits.

But inwardly she wondered if he was right. She had been a little envious of Nami going off to travel the world. Maybe she'd let that subconsciously cloud her judgment.

"Don't change your mind on my account," he said in a rather abrupt about face from his previous position. "It'll be lonely with both of you girls gone, I'll admit. But I don't want you blaming me for having missed this opportunity."

"What happened to it being too dangerous?" she asked him.

"I didn't want you to go," he admitted. "But in all honesty, those two boys seem decent enough folk. Really, I can't see it being nearly as dangerous as joining a pirate crew. Just take care of yourself."

"I will," she promised him, giving him a quick hug.

Then finishing her preparations, she made it back to where Naruto and Kiba were waiting, and still had a few minutes to spare before her deadline. Nojiko was glad to see them, worrying a bit on the way back that Naruto would have changed his mind and used the opportunity to leave her behind.

"Ready to go?" Naruto asked her.

"Yeah, let's head out," she suggested.

Nojiko hadn't expected to depart Cocoyashi Village herself so soon after Nami had. But she was looking forward to swapping adventure stories with her sister some day. Although if Nojiko had anything to do with it, that day would be far off, as she was going to do her best to keep these marines far away from her sister.

* * *

**AN**

I think the story is finally starting to get moving. I realize none of the fights in this chapter were probably all that exciting. But at the very least, the fight with Krieg should be the last one to mirror canon so closely. They won't all be so easily won either. There are much bigger fish in the sea than Krieg.

Anyway, it's been great hearing from so many reviewers (by my modest standards at least) each chapter. In consideration, I even decided to post a real chapter instead of random characters as my original plan had called for. But don't worry, I'm sure I'll think of other ways to be a jerk.

**Update: **It seems this webiste has started eating my usual linebreaks. (It eats its own name too, although I can at least understand the risk from web addresses.) And it's gone back and done this retroactively for all my old stories. But I've added in line breaks it does seem to support. I don't know how any of you read this prior to my update. I'm not looking forward to going through all my old stories and adding in line breaks, but I'll at least get the other Naruto the Marine chapters fixed quickly.**  
**


	6. Chapter 6

"_This_ is your ship?" Nojiko asked in surprise.

The black sailed vessel she stood in front of looked nothing like any marine ship she'd ever seen.

"Yeah, we captured it from some pirates," Naruto informed her. "We decided we might as well put it to use, but we haven't had a chance to repaint the sails yet."

"Are the marines really so hard up for ships they couldn't give you one of their own?" Nojiko queried.

"That's ... a bit of a long story," Naruto told her hesitantly.

"Yeah, nothing you need to worry about," Kiba added, looking decidedly nervous.

They were obviously hiding something from her, but she decided not to press the subject. After all, she wasn't being entirely open with them. So instead she boarded the ship, dragging the suitcase she'd packed behind her.

"There are a number of empty quarters below deck," Naruto told Nojiko after following her aboard. "Feel free to claim whichever one you want."

Thanking him, she decided to take him up on his offer, heading down the stairs and below deck. The hold contained a number of crates and barrels and quite a bit of rope and chain. Looking around she was wondering which room she should check first when one of the doors began to open.

Did they have another crew member on board? But the person who walked out of the room was Naruto. How had he gotten down here before her?

"What are you doing down here?" he demanded of her.

"You ... um ... told me to pick a room." she replied, still trying to figure out what had just happened.

"Oh? I did?" he asked her. "Does that mean you're coming with us?"

"Uh ... yes?" she replied, her confusion causing her response to come out as more of a question than a statement.

"Did you pick out your room yet?" a familiar voice asked from behind her.

Spinning around quickly to face back toward the stairs she confirmed it was indeed Naruto, dragging the still unconscious fishmen behind him. She turned back and forth between the two Narutos several times to confirm she wasn't seeing things.

"Ah, so you're identical twins?" she asked, glad to have a logical explanation for Naruto's earlier positional and behavioral changes.

"Not exactly," the Naruto by the stairs answered. "It's probably easiest if I just showed you."

Nojiko jumped as two more Narutos popped into existence next to her without warning. Poking one of the new additions, she confirmed it felt solid. Then as one, the two new ones and the one that had first started this situation by coming out of the room vanished.

"Pretty neat, huh?" Naruto said proudly.

"You know, I'm going to go pick my room now," Nojiko answered. "I could certainly use bed to lie down on."

"You better get used to strange things," Naruto advised. "Lots of people on the Grand Line have devil fruit powers. Any many of their powers are even more unusual than mine."

A couple of days ago, she'd been sure stories about devil fruit were simply myths. Now she'd personally seen the powers of two people who had consumed them. One of whom she was traveling with to a place where such people were common. Just what had she gotten herself into?

* * *

Naruto stood at the bow of the ship enjoying the sea breeze. One good thing that had come out of his meeting with the two Nezumis was that he'd had a chance to get some spare uniforms. He just felt more comfortable wearing one for some reason. He heard footsteps behind him and turned to see they belonged to Nojiko.

He still had reservations about bringing a civilian. And they were only magnified by how shell-shocked the blue haired young woman had been the other day when she'd first learned about his power. Thankfully, by the next morning it appeared she had fully recovered. She even took Akamaru's devil fruit power in stride.

"So, how much do you know about Luffy's crew?" Nojiko asked him.

"Well there's Pirate Hunter Zoro and some long nosed kid named Usopp," he counted off. "There were a couple of bounty hunters named Yosaku and Johnny and a cook by the name of Sanji who associated with him. But I'm not sure if they're members of his crew or not."

"I guess you already know about all of them I got a look at," Nojiko told him. "I was hoping I could help you there."

"Don't worry, we'll find them," Naruto promised her.

But she didn't seem terribly comforted by his assurance. Poor girl was probably still worried about what the pirates would do to her sister.

"Anyway, you said you hadn't been able to repaint the sails yet," Nojiko stated. "Is there any reason for that?"

"We don't have any paint," he answered.

"I thought that might be it," she said cheerfully. "We really should get some, unless you want to risk other marines mistaking you for pirates."

"Yeah, we'll get around to that when we have some time," he replied.

"I also couldn't find any spare lumber," she added. "What are we going to do if the ship needs repairs? And you don't have much variety in food. I said I could cook but I can't exactly work miracles. You know, we could stop back at my village quickly. I'm sure everyone would be happy to give us the supplies we need after how you helped us."

"Turning back now is too far out of our way," Naruto pointed out.

Nojiko looked disappointed by his pronouncement, and he wondered if she might be feeling a bit homesick already. She could be beating around the bush, not wanting to admit that openly after the scene she made the other day.

"You know, if you're having second thoughts about leaving home, I'm sure we can find someone who will take you back," he offered.

"No, it's not that," she quickly answered. "I just think we need to be fully prepared. You said yourself the Grand Line is a dangerous place."

"Actually," Naruto replied thoughtfully, "Loguetown should be only about an hour from here. We could stop there and get supplies without losing much time."

"That sounds great," Nojiko cheerfully declared.

"Besides, there's a good chance Luffy and his crew will stop in Loguetown as well," he told her.

"Oh? Why is that?" she asked, tensing up a bit.

It seemed however much she wanted to save her sister, she still grew nervous at the thought of facing the pirates again. Not that he could blame her. An ordinary civilian would be no match for even normal pirates. And Luffy was no normal pirate.

"It's the birthplace and execution site of Gold Rogers," Naruto answered. "It's almost like a tourist spot for pirates."

"In that case, do you mind if I take a turn in the crow's nest?" Nojiko queried. "I'm the most likely to recognize their ship if we come across it."

"Go right ahead," he responded.

* * *

As they neared Loguetown, Nojiko examined the other ships in dock through the telescope. Sure enough, there was the Going Merry. Of all the rotten luck. Why did she have to suggest this in the first place? But there was still hope the two parties wouldn't run into other. After all, her companions just wanted to get in, get their supplies, and leave as quickly as possible.

"Their ship isn't here," she yelled down down to Naruto, who was at the helm.

Or maybe it was one his clones? She hadn't figured out a way to tell the difference.

"But it looks like there's another port further north," she added. "We should check there as well."

"Setting course now," he yelled back.

Unsurprisingly there was no ship in the northern dock that matched the false description she'd given them. So she climbed back down to the deck as the ship was docked. Phase one of her plan was a success. Now she just needed to make sure they didn't bump into anyone from Luffy's crew.

But this was a pretty big town, so what were the odds of that? She just needed to try to convince them to stick together. If they split up she wouldn't be able to keep an eye on both marines.

"Akamaru and I should stay here and guard the ship," Kiba suggested.

"Yes!" Nojiko responded but winced as she realized she sounded far too excited about that. "I mean, that's a good idea."

If they thought it odd, they didn't say anything. And it certainly made her job easier to only have one of them running around town. So leaving with Naruto, they made their way into town.

"So, do you and your sister have any family back in Cocoyashi Village?" Naruto inquired.

"No," she answered solemnly. "Our mother was killed when Arlong took over our village. We don't have any family left but each other."

"Sorry," Naruto replied. "I didn't mean to bring up any bad memories."

"Don't worry about it," she told him. "It happened a long time ago. Not that you ever truly get over it."

"I know what you mean," he replied. "I'm an orphan too. My father died over a decade ago. You learn to deal with it, but you never really stop missing them."

Looking down a side street to her right, her eyes went wide. She'd let herself get too caught up in their conversation and forgotten what she was supposed to be doing here. Now Zoro was running directly their way. Frantically scanning the area, she spotted a shop that looked promising, grabbed Naruto's hand, and dragged him inside.

"What's the big rush?" Naruto asked her after they were safely inside.

"Ah, just excited about shopping," she answered nervously. "You know how women get about shopping."

Inwardly she kicked herself for coming up with such a lame excuse.

"You're excited about buying lumber?" he asked dubiously as he examined the contents of the hardware store they'd entered.

"They have paint too," she quickly pointed out, grabbing up a large can of white paint and trying to smile convincingly.

Eventually he nodded and went around looking for the wood and tools they would need.

"That's all you're buying?" Nojiko asked when she saw him preparing to make his purchases.

"It seems like enough for now," he answered.

"It's better to err on the side of caution," she told him, and proceeded to grab up lumber from around the store and add it to the stack he was carrying.

Soon it was piled high enough that it blocked his vision. That should help if they have any more unlucky encounters. Naruto paid for their supplies and managed to maneuver his way outside the shop again.

"This is a lot of stuff," he complained. "I'm going to get some clones to help me."

"No!" she ordered quickly. "I mean you don't want to cause a scene do you? Not everyone is used to seeing devil fruit powers."

"I guess not," he admitted. "But I can't even see where I'm going."

"Don't worry. I'll guide you," she assured him.

Now they just needed to get some food and they could leave. Wait, there was Zoro again, running toward them from directly ahead. Not having time to be choosy this time. She twisted Naruto sideways and shoved him through the nearest door, following him inside.

"What are we doing in a clothing store?" he asked.

"I need to buy a raincoat," she lied. "It looks like it's going to rain."

"The sky looked clear to me," Naruto countered.

"Just trust me, I know these things," she insisted. "You should probably buy one too."

"I'll risk it," he responded.

So she began to look over raincoats. When she concluded she'd stalled long enough to give the green haired swordsman plenty of time to get out of the area, she selected a dark purple coat and purchased it.

Continuing on their shopping trip, she located a grocery store and led Naruto inside. The place seemed to have a pretty nice selection. Fruits, vegetables, a wide variety of spices, a blond cook. Wait ... a blond cook?! Looking again she confirmed that was indeed Sanji shopping in the same store as them.

At least his back was turned so he hadn't seen them yet. Running over to him, she shoved him to the ground behind an aisle. That would hide him from Naruto's view if he peeked out from around the lumber.

"Close your eyes and wait there quietly for a minute," she whispered to Sanji in her most sultry tone. "I have a surprise for you that I know you'll enjoy."

Sanji actually listened to her without even glancing back to see who had said it. So she left the now grinning fool there and went back to Naruto.

"This store doesn't look very good," she whispered to him. "We should go to another one."

"Why are we whispering?" he asked.

"Because it would be rude if the owner of the store heard me insult it," she told him.

Leading him back to the door, she started to walk out but came to a sudden stop when she saw Zoro run by a third time. What on earth was he doing? She watched him run into an alley a short distance away and again began to leave the store.

But she came up short a second time when Zoro ran right back out of the same alley he'd just entered. That's it, she was going to kill that idiot.

"What do you keep stopping for?" Naruto asked.

"There's a crowd outside," Nojiko claimed. "I just don't want you bumping into them. Don't worry though, they're moving on."

Her luck from that point improved a little. She was able to find another grocery store and buy some food and spices without running into any other familiar faces. And surprisingly, it had started pouring while they'd been in the store.

"Looks like you were right about the rain," Naruto conceded.

"Next time you'll know not to doubt me," she answered with a small laugh.

It figured that the only luck she'd have today was being right about the bad weather. At least she had her rain coat. Setting down the groceries she was carrying, she took her coat out of its bag and began to put it on. Meanwhile Naruto had managed to find his way outside and was already being soaked by the rain.

"Stop that pirate!" a feminine voice cried out.

Despite the fact she'd only gotten as far as putting one arm into the sleeve of her new coat, Nojiko ran outside in response to the call. But she was relieved to see it wasn't one of Luffy's crew, instead being a man with a big red nose who looked more like a clown than a pirate.

Turning sidewise so he could get a look at the man, Naruto moved in front of his path to block him. But instead of a collision, the pirate split into pieces. His upper body flew over Naruto's head while his feet ran right between his legs.

She watched his parts reattach themselves on the other side and continued running toward the docks. She still wasn't used to seeing devil fruit powers on display. But turning back, she saw that the woman who had called out hadn't slowed her own run and crashed into Naruto. Both of them went sprawling with the lumber and tools Naruto was carrying tumbling all over the place, along with the sword the woman had been wielding.

"Naruto?" the dark haired woman asked they recovered.

"Tashigi?" he replied.

Apparently the two of them knew each other.

"Ah, I don't have time for this," Tashigi cried out, jumping to her feet, grabbing up her sword. "Buggy is getting away."

She then ran off after the departing form of the pirate.

"I'm going to help her," Naruto informed Nojiko.

In a flash, two clones where next to Nojiko gathering up the fallen supplies while the real Naruto ran off after Tashigi. Not wanting to be left behind, Nojiko got up and followed after him. As she ran she got her other arm into her rain coat so it wouldn't drag behind her, but didn't see the point in buttoning it up, as she was already soaked.

It quickly became obvious that even her top speed wasn't enough to keep up. Naruto was gaining on Tashigi, but both of them were pulling further ahead of her.

"Wait for me!" she called out.

Glancing back, Naruto summoned a third clone. The clone scooped her up in its arms without warning and ran with her in pursuit of the original Naruto. She struggled reflexively for a moment before calming down.

As embarrassing as it was, this was the only way she'd be able to keep from getting left behind. Still, being carried through the street, soaking wet, was not how she'd envisioned the day going.

* * *

Buggy and their crew had made it back to their ship and sailed off as quickly as they could hoist the anchor. As they pulled away he let out a sigh of relief for having escaped that island.

"Captain, a ship just left the dock in pursuit of us," Mohji informed him.

Grabbing a telescope, he looked at the ship himself, worried Smoker was coming after him. But in all the rain he wasn't able to make out who was on board.

"Keep running," he ordered, deciding to play it safe.

But the other ship proved faster, slowly gaining on them. Still, as they distance shrunk he was able to get a better look at their pursuers. He didn't see Smoker anywhere on the other ship. Just that swordswoman who was chasing him earlier and a couple more young marines. And she'd soon learn that Buggy had nothing to fear from swords.

"Bring us about," he ordered. "Prepare to open fire."

Turning the ship until their port cannons were facing the other vessel, they fired three shots. Two of them went wide to either side. However, Buggy was please to see the third taking a trajectory that would have it land right on top of a blond marine standing at the bow of their ship.

Seeing it hit he turned to Cabaji beside him.

"That's was almost too gruesome to wa … HE CAUGHT IT?!!"

What kind of a person could catch a cannonball with their bare hands? Still he couldn't protect the entire ship at once.

"Keep firing," he ordered. "I want that ship GAH!"

The end of his order was cut off as he was forced to dodge the cannonball the young man had just caught. He'd thrown it back at him?! Examining the hole left in his deck, he struggled to get his heart rate back under control realizing how close that had come to hitting him.

Of course with Buggy's ship no longer fleeing, the other vessel was closing rapidly. And while he was still trying to recover from the shock of the most recent attack, his attacker himself landed on the Big Top's deck.

"You're boarding my ship?" Buggy mocked the blond. "Do you really think one person can take on my entire crew?"

"How about five?" he asked as four more blonds popped into existence around him.

That made five copies of a boy that could catch a cannonball and throw it back. As he was realizing that, another boy, a large dog, and that swordswoman from before all jumped across, the two ships now having been pulled up next to each other.

"My crew is still more than capable of handling you themselves," he said as quickly flew up above the ship and out of range.

"Captain Buggy!" several of them cried out in protest.

But they weren't given much time for protest as they were attacked by their opponents. It's not like they had any room for complaint in the first place. He was just more valuable coordinating the fight from up here where he could get a good view.

"You call yourself a lion?" he yelled at Richie. "How can you be losing to a dog."

There, see? His motivational speaking would be the key to their victory. He spotted someone else who looked to be in need of his help.

"First Zoro and now you're losing to a woman, Cabaji?" he berated.

Although oddly enough, while he'd been trying to motivate Cabaji, the woman was the one who seemed to be fighting harder in response to his call.

"Stop lying around and get up!" he ordered his crew, as the majority of those cowards were no longer participating, instead being sprawled out on the ground.

It was then he noticed one of the blonds was standing over his feet, which were still back on the deck, examining them curiously.

"Don't touch those!" he screamed.

"Oh?" the boy said in response. "You mean I shouldn't do this?"

He then stomped down on one of them hard, and Buggy was sure he felt some of the bones snap from the impact. Furious at they boy for the assault he flew down and got right into his face.

"I told you not to do that!" he screeched.

But the blond just smiled and it was then he came to the realization that he was now only inches from the person he'd flown up to avoid. The last thing he remembered was a fist heading for his face.

* * *

"I want to thank you again for your help, Naruto," Tashigi told him. "Without the use of your ship, Buggy and his crew would have gotten away."

"Just doing my duty," he told her. "Anyway there's no reason you can't take these three back by yourself."

The three he was referring to were Buggy, Cabaji, and Mohji, the three leaders of the Buggy Pirates. Buggy was wrapped up in several nets, which were themselves put in a large sack that Naruto was carrying to make sure no body parts got away. The other two were more traditionally bound and walking behind them.

"Nonsense," she told him. "This is the second event I owe you big for. I'm not letting you go without meeting my Captain. I'll make sure he puts you in for a commendation."

Naruto acquiesced, but still didn't look happy. He must be one of those people who just wasn't comfortable with praise. They soon entered the base, allowing themselves to get out of the storm. Another marine approached the two of them plus three captives as they dripped all over the entranceway.

"We've recaptured Buggy the Clown," she informed him. "Where's Captain Smoker?"

"We're sorry, Ensign Tashigi," he replied. "But he left town to chase after Straw Hat Luffy. He was looking for you before he left, but no one could find you."

She'd been left behind? And when Smoker was going after the Straw Hat Pirates too? There went her chance to confront Zoro again.

"Wait," Naruto said to the man, "Luffy was here in Loguetown?"

"Yeah, but he managed to escape," the marine responded. "Why? Have you run into them before?"

"We were chasing after the Straw Hat Pirates as well," Naruto answered. "But we didn't know they were here on the island."

"You're after them too?" asked Tashigi. "If that's the case I have a favor to ask you. Please, take me with you."

"Uh, I don't know if that's a good idea," he replied.

"I know I'm the one who owes you," she admitted, "so I shouldn't be asking for more favors. But please, I have unfinished business with Zoro. And if you're both going after the Straw Hat Pirates, I might run into my captain."

He still appeared to be mulling over the idea, probably wondering if she'd be worth taking. Crashing into him earlier probably hadn't made the best impression.

"Look, I know I can be a bit clumsy," she told him. "But you've seen me fight. I'm sure I can help you. And I'll train really hard to improve."

"That's not what I'm worried about," he reassured her. "It's just … oh forget it. If you're that determined to come, I'd be happy to have you along."

"Thank you," she replied graciously. "You won't regret this. I'll find a way to pay you back for everything someday. I'll just grab a couple of things and meet you at the ship."

Tashigi turned around intending to run off and do as she'd said. Instead she tripped over the sack containing Buggy and landed rather painfully face first on the ground.

"Watch where you're going you stupid woman!" Buggy yelled from in the sack. "When I get out of here I'll make you pay for that."

"Oh, you want a rematch?" Naruto asked threateningly.

"I'm sorry," Buggy quickly answered. "I meant to say there's no need to apologize to a pirate like me. I only hope you weren't injured in your fall."

"Don't worry, I'm used to it," Tashigi told him. "I mean I'm alright."

Getting up she hurried off into the back and out of sight. That was great. She'd just been trying to convince him she was worth bringing along and then she had that little display. At least he had already agreed. Now she just needed to pull herself together before he changed his mind.

* * *

Naruto saw Tashigi making her way through the rain to the ship, carrying a satchel over her shoulder. The worst of the storm seemed to have passed, but there was still a good amount of rain falling. He greeted her as she came aboard the vessel.

"We didn't have time for proper introductions before," he declared. "But this is Ensign Kiba, Akamaru, and Nojiko."

Tashigi nodded to each one as he introduced them.

"Everyone, this is Ensign Tashigi," he continued. "She'll be joining our crew. I'm sorry this isn't the best weather for a welcoming party."

"Nice job finding her," Kiba whispered approvingly to Naruto.

"I'm sorry," Tashigi said, addressing Nojiko, "but I didn't catch your rank."

"I'm not in the marines," Nojiko replied simply.

"Nojiko's sister was captured by the Straw Hat Pirates," Naruto added. "She's come along to help rescue her."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Tashigi told her, "But I promise I'll do my best to help bring them to justice."

"Yeah … thanks," Nojiko replied with a strained smile. "That's … uh … just what I wanted to hear."

Naruto nodded, impressed she was trying to put on a front of cheerfulness for Tashigi's sake when the thought of her sister being held by pirates obviously made her uneasy.

"If you don't mind my asking, how did you get your own ship already?" Tashigi inquired.

He did mind her asking, but Naruto wasn't about to say that. Nojiko, however, was kind enough to answer for him while he was still deliberating how best to respond.

"A marine captain by the name of Nezumi sent them after Luffy," she said. "He got beat up by the Straw Hat Pirates himself, so he sent some combat specialists after them."

"That makes sense," she replied to Naruto's relief. "I've seen Naruto fight on more than one occasion and he's very impressive."

"I'm really strong too, you know," Kiba claimed. "Buggy's crew was just too weak for you to see what I can really do."

"Ah, I wasn't implying you weren't," she assured Kiba. "I just didn't get much of a chance to see you fighting in all the chaos."

"Well forgive me for not having a flashy power or anything," responded Kiba petulantly.

"Now that we're all acquainted, let's shove off," Naruto ordered. "The longer we delay, the further behind we get."

So they left the dock and set course for Reverse Mountain. Since this wasn't a marine vessel, that would be the only way they could enter the Grand Line. It didn't take long for the rain to let up. And once the wind had dried the sails enough, Naruto set his clones to work and finally repainted the sails white.

Before the paint had even finished drying, Reverse Mountain came into sight. It was then his clone up in the crow's nest pointed out an oddity to him. Off to the side, a fair ways from the entrance, was a small marine vessel that appeared to have crashed into the side of the mountain.

The currents were supposed to be tricky around the entrance, but they were crashed pretty far off for them to have simply been pushed away by the currents. Either way he decided to investigate and see if they needed help.

As they got closer, Naruto was able to make out a number of marines standing on the ship. It seemed someone did need help after all. But when he was close enough to make out through the telescope just who was on the ship he gasped.

"That can't be," he said out loud.

"What can't be?" Tashigi asked from next to him.

"See for yourself," he told her, handing off the telescope.

She examined the ship herself before letting out a gasp of her own.

"I don't believe it," she declared.

"I'm going drop anchor a short distance from them," he informed her. "I don't want to risk getting the ship too close to the shallows. Then I'll be taking a lifeboat over to see I can help them. Care to join me?"

"I guess," she replied unenthusiastically.

Making good on his plan, Naruto was soon lowering the small row boat into the water and rowing the two of them over to other ship. When he got there, someone lowered a rope ladder for them to climb. Only when he attempted to do so he found it wasn't secured to anything and almost went over the edge of the boat.

Frustrated, he grabbed the rope ladder, and jumped up onto the other ship. Making sure it was tied off properly he dropped it to Tashigi who used it to climb up. They then looked around to see a small crowd had gathered around them.

"Naruto, Tashigi, imagine seeing you here," a portly marine told them. "I haven't seen either of you since that naval exercise thing we won."

And getting a closer look at them, he confirmed that, yes, every single one of them were the other recruits on that exercise.

"I'm sorry, I don't believe I ever got your name," Tashigi replied.

"I'm Seaman Chops, ma'am," he told her. "Or at least that's what everyone calls me. Imagine all of us are together again now. What are the odds of that?"

"I'm surprised you even all got the same assignment," Naruto pointed out.

"We must have really impressed them with our victory," Chops boasted. "The proctor even told us he'd never seen a group like us before. That we had something special. So they decided to post us all together in a special group."

"It's called the Punishment Squad," another one added. "That's an imposing name, don't you think?"

"So, where's your captain?" Tashigi asked them instead of answering.

"You mean our current captain?" Chops queried. "We've had six captains since our squad was formed."

"Yes, your current captain will be fine," Tashigi told them.

"He's been locked up in his room for days," Chops answered. "But we hear a lot of crying from inside. We think he must be really sick."

"So I take it you had trouble navigating Reverse Mountain," Naruto said, changing the subject again.

"Oh we weren't trying to use Reverse Mountain," Chops corrected him. "We were just patrolling the area for any pirates who were."

"Then how did you crash?" Naruto asked curiously.

"Well, none of us had ever seen Reverse Mountain before," Chops told him. "So we were all so engrossed at getting a good look that we didn't notice that none of us were at the helm until we crashed."

"We're going to check how much damage your ship took," Naruto informed them, trying to end the conversation lest he add any more fuel to a growing headache. "Tashigi, you check the inside and I'll examine the outside."

So Naruto went to the bow of the ship and jumped off onto land. From what he could see, there didn't appear to be any significant damage. The ship was simply stuck in shallow water. Soon Tashigi came back up to talk to him.

"I'm not seeing any holes or leaks," she reported.

"Looks good here too," he told her. "Pull our boat on board then I'll see about getting them unstuck."

After the row boat had been secured on the larger vessel, he summoned four clones to push the boat back into deeper water. Hopping on board himself he signaled for them to start. Their strength proved sufficient as the boat moved backwards. The clones all vanished from following it into the seawater, but that was no matter.

Tashigi and Naruto helped them get the boat turned around and ready to sail again, before lowering their row boat and climbing back down to it.

"It looks seaworthy," Naruto called back up to them. "But I recommend going back to Loguetown and having it professionally looked at."

"We'll do that," Chops called back. "Thanks again."

Their whole crew stood at the stern of the ship waving goodbye. Wait, their whole crew was at the stern of their ship, which was current sailing directly toward where his was anchored.

"Get to the helm and turn your ship!" He yelled out angrily.

He saw Chops scurry off and waited anxiously as the two ships drew closer. But then the Punishment Squad's ship did begin to turn and, he was relieved to see, narrowly avoided a collision. He watched them sail off briefly, kind of expecting something else to go wrong.

"That's not the way to Loguetown," Tashigi pointed out.

"Do you want to catch up to them and make sure they get back safely?" he asked.

"I'm sure they'll be fine," she answered after pondering that for a moment.

Returning to their ship he was able to hoist the anchor and resume their previous course. Naruto took the helm and approached the treacherous waters at the entrance of Reverse Mountain. After getting a good look at where they were headed, Kiba came up to him nervously.

"You sure you can handle this," he asked. "This isn't exactly your specialty."

"No it isn't," he admitted. "But I have a plan. Look."

Kiba directed his focus at the bow of the ship where Naruto was pointing. There, he had four clones leaning over the edge and examining the water.

"I don't get it," Kiba admitted.

"Then just watch. We're about to enter," Naruto told him, not having time to explain.

They were all closely watching the position of the rocks and examining the currents. Every so often, one of his clones would vanish, instantly giving him the memory of what it had just seen. Which allowed him to quickly react accordingly and steer the ship. He would then summon another which would take its place.

It was still difficult to pull off. Kiba was right, this wasn't his specialty. But he made it through the gates unscathed and from there the current did most of the work itself. Everyone was gathered around him on the deck watching the ship go up the mountain appreciatively.

"This is amazing," Nojiko declared excitedly. "I've never seen anything like it."

"I haven't either," Tashigi admitted. "I traveled through the Calm Belt to get to East Blue."

Soon they reached the apex and began their descent toward the Grand Line. He could see his ocean of birth coming into view, but that wasn't the only thing. Waiting at the bottom was a large marine vessel. He saw Kiba growing nervous beside him, but tried to stay calm himself. They didn't know what it was there for.

When they hit the bottom and entered the Grand Line, the other ship began to approach them. Drawing up on the port side of their own ship, he saw an officer standing by the starboard railing looking at him.

"Namikaze Naruto," he called out. "I am under orders to escort your ship back to base."

Well, wasn't that just perfect?

* * *

**AN**

It appears this website made a change such that it no longer displays the characters I previously used to indicate a line break. I suspect it is pretty recent, as my for my two latest chapters, it removed them upon upload. But my older chapters still had the characters saved in the documents, they just wouldn't display.

But I apologize to anyone who had to read any of my chapters without them. I don't know how you made any sense of it. I need to thank INeedMotivation for pointing that out to me so I could correct it. I've fixed all the chapters of this story, but I'm still putting off fixing my older stories.

But on the narrative itself. They're finally into the Grand Line and I'm about to start my first major story arc. In addition I have my first cliffhanger of the series. I usually prefer not to end a chapter on a cliffhanger, but I'm not above using them from time to time, as I've just proved.

But thanks again for all the reviews. The last chapter became my most reviewed chapter ever and did so within 24 of being posted. I'll try to keep more chapters coming.


	7. Chapter 7

"What do we do?" Kiba asked Naruto.

"We follow them," Naruto replied. "We knew this was going to happen sooner or later, it's time to face the music."

Turning back to the officer on the other ship Naruto called out his response.

"Understood, sir. We'll follow behind you."

The marine vessel began to sail deeper into the Grand Line, and Naruto matched the ship's heading and sailed after it. Their two most recent additions to the crew were understandably confused about what was going on. Tashigi, however, was the first to ask about it.

"What were you two talking about?" she inquired. "And do you have any idea what that was about?"

"I guess there's no point in hiding it anymore," Naruto replied. "It's true that Captain Nezumi sent us after the Straw Hat Pirates. But he didn't give us this ship."

"Then who did?" she asked curiously.

"Actually, we just sort of took it," he admitted. "They wanted it destroyed anyway, so it's not like we really stole it. I think they're more upset with us leaving without telling anyone."

"You mean you're just a couple of rogue marines?" Nojiko interjected.

"It's not like that," Kiba said defensively. "Our commanding officer was imprisoned before we even arrived at our first assignment. The place was in chaos and they didn't even know what to do with us. So we just decided for them."

"Don't worry," Naruto assured them. "We'll make it clear that neither of you two knew anything about this."

"What possessed you to do it in the first place?" Tashigi asked. "You had to know you would get caught eventually."

"It just felt like something I had to do," Naruto replied honestly. "I am sorry I won't be able to return you to your captain. But maybe they'll be able to locate him at the base."

"You should be more worried about yourself," she snapped back, surprising Naruto with the force of her reply. "You could have ruined a promising career with your decision. If you don't follow the rules, you're no better than a bounty hunter no matter how many pirates you capture."

Having said her piece, she stormed off and went below deck without even giving him a chance to reply. Naruto was still stunned by the strength of her reaction. He certainly wasn't expecting praise, but that seemed a bit much to him.

And now the part he was really dreading. With Tashigi practically biting his head off, he could only imagine how Nojiko would react to this. After all, her sister's life was on the line.

"I guess I owe you an even larger apology," he told Nojiko. "I got your hopes up and now I won't be able do anything for your sister."

"Don't worry about it," she answered without a hint of recrimination. "I'm sure you did the best you could. And it's not like you would have been able to do anything for her if you hadn't taken this ship. Besides, Nami is resourceful, I'm sure she'll be fine."

Okay, now he was really confused. The person he was just giving a ride to was furious with him, and the one with a sister he'd failed to save wasn't upset at all.

"I just want to remind you, this was all your idea," Kiba declared.

Kiba on the other hand was completely predictable. Maybe it was just women being naturally incomprehensible.

* * *

Naruto continued following the marine ship in front of them lifelessly. Not even the crazy weather they ran into early in the Grand Line was able to bring him out of his funk. Tashigi had been right. No matter how boring it would have been, he should have just stayed on Shell Island. If he'd just been patient and worked hard, eventually things would have worked out.

But he couldn't take back what he'd done. Now he'd just have to hope he wasn't kicked out of the marines. But the waiting to find out what they'd do with him was the worst part. He needed to find something to take his mind off this mess or he'd go crazy.

Actually, he remembered seeing some guns and targets down in the hold when he was taking inventory. He preferred using his fists, but maybe some target practice would make a decent distraction. Heading down to the hold he found the items he was looking for.

There were three straw targets and a big stack of paper with circles painted around a bullseye. You could drape the paper of the targets and replace them when they became too riddled with holes. He also grabbed a handgun and a good supply of bullets.

Going back above deck he gave each of the three targets to a clone to hold over the railing. But after shooting for several minutes it became evident this wasn't helping his mood. He'd only managed to hit the bullseye once.

Sure he was a bit out of practice, and this gun was pretty low quality. But with how close he was to the targets he shouldn't be having anywhere near this much trouble. His mood must be affecting him more than he thought.

"Mind if I give it a try?" Nojiko asked from behind him.

He hadn't realized he'd had an audience.

"Go right ahead," he told her. "My focus is so off I don't know why I'm even bothering. You ever used a gun before?"

"No," she answered. "But how hard can it be? You point and you pull the trigger."

Naruto reloaded the revolver for her, while his clones put fresh targets over the straw. Handing it to Nojiko she deliberately took very careful aim at the leftmost target before pulling the trigger. Checking where it had hit, he saw she was a little low and to the left, but only two circles from the bullseye.

"Not bad for your first time firing a gun," he told her encouragingly. "Try it again."

Firing a second shot, he saw that she'd overcompensated, going high and to the right, but was only one circle of from the center this time.

"I think I've got it now," she said confidently.

Naruto chuckled a bit at that.

"That was a nice shot," he admitted, "but you'll find that being consistent with your aim isn't as easy as it looks. If it only took two shots to get your aim down ..."

"Bullseye!" Nojiko shouted proudly, having fired off a third shot in the middle of Naruto's sentence.

She then quickly fired off two more shots, and Naruto was amazed to see all three targets had now been hit dead center.

"... everyone would be a sharpshooter," Naruto deadpanned, completing his earlier sentence.

Normally Naruto would happy for her success. But they say misery loves company. And with his current sour disposition he just wanted to bring her down a peg or two. And he might have just the way to do that.

"You seem to be quite a natural," he told her. "Why don't we move you on to trying moving targets? But I should warn you, it's quite a bit more difficult."

"I'm willing to give it a try," Nojiko replied, already reloading the revolver.

From the mischievous grins he saw on his clones' faces as they replaced the paper targets over the straw, he knew they were thinking the same thing he was. Completing their tasks they began to move the targets around as quickly and erratically as they could. Even hitting the targets at all would be difficult with their movements. But undaunted, Nojiko fired off three shots in rapid succession.

"You were right," she told him. "That was a lot harder. The third one was a little off."

Sure enough, two of the targets had received a solid bullseye, while the third shot had landed right on the line between the center of the target and the first ring.

"I'm going to my cabin to lie down for a while," Naruto declared, having had his fill of target practice. "You three help Nojiko out if she wants to continue practicing."

"I don't want to do this anymore," one of his clones complained.

"Yeah," the other two quickly agreed.

"Just shut up and do it!" he answered tersely, then stomped off down below deck.

Snapping at himself? He was even more on edge then he'd realized. He really did need to lie down for a while.

* * *

Finally they had docked their ship next to the marine vessel that had been leading them. All five of them disembarked, finding the captain of the other ship already waiting for them on the docks.

"Welcome to G-5 Base," he told them.

G-5 was definitely the largest base Naruto had seen since leaving Marinford. It was a large complex of buildings, at least ten based on what he could see. There were also a dozen marine ships currently docked and a few more visible patrolling the area.

It had a much more rustic look than Marinford though. Rather than being nothing but buildings and pavements, he could see several open fields. And there were numerous trees and bushes growing, with many marines relaxing under the former.

Even a couple of picnics seemed to be going on. This hardly looked like the sort of discipline he would expect in the middle of a marine base. Didn't they have work they could be doing?

"I wish I could say it was a pleasure to be here," Naruto replied. "But given the circumstances, I'm afraid that isn't true."

The captain let out a deep laugh at his reply.

"I won't hold that against you," he told Naruto. "Now if all of you will follow me, we can get this over with. Maybe when afterward you'll have a chance to relax and enjoy the area."

"Yeah, we'll have plenty of time to relax in prison," Kiba muttered.

"That may very well be," the man answered letting out another laugh.

"I'm not actually a marine," Nojiko pointed out. "I'm I even allowed in the base?"

"Eh, don't worry about it," he replied casually. "No one's going to care."

The five of them were led into a large building in the center of the complex where they were directed to sit down in a lobby area. There were a number of tables set up around the room, and the four humans selected one and sat, with Akamaru lying on the floor nearby.

"Just wait here and the boss will be with you soon enough," they were told, before the man left them to themselves.

"Great, more waiting," Naruto complained.

And they were waiting for more than an hour with nothing more interesting then the occasional marine passing by. Naruto and Kiba's collective anxiety had put a pall over the table that had stifled any conversation. The waiting had become so unbearable that it was quite a relief when a marine who looked to be in his thirties approached them.

"Hey there folks," he greeted. "The name's Karl. I hear rumor that you're the kids who stole a ship to go off on a joyride."

Karl was a thickly muscled man with a shaved head. He appeared to be deliberately going for a tough guy look. But his efforts were somewhat hindered by his less than intimidating height that fell almost half a foot short of Naruto's own.

"It's not like that!" Kiba yelled, jumping angrily to his feet. "We were out ridding East Blue of its pirates."

"Don't lie to me kid," Karl told him. "You do know the marines keep records of who turned in any pirates with bounties on them, right? We just got the latest list today. I got myself a nice five million beli paycheck from a pirate I captured earlier this week."

"Wait, Marines can collect the bounties?" Naruto asked curiously. "Aren't we already getting paid to capture pirates?"

"A marine can collect half the bounty," Karl informed him. "But I wouldn't be too concerned about that. Even if you did catch any real pirates, it's doubtful any of them had bounties."

"Why don't we have a look at that list of yours and we'll find out?" Naruto suggested, knowing for a fact that some of the pirates he'd captured did indeed have bounties.

"Hey Mary," Karl called out to a receptionist sitting at a desk by the entrance. "Bring us the bounty list."

The young woman nodded and carried over a large binder to the table handing it to Karl. Karl grabbed a seat from a nearby table and invited himself to sit down with Naruto's group.

"So, whose name did you give when you turned in these pirates of yours?" Karl asked.

"That'd be mine, Namikaze Naruto," he answered.

"Let's see, Namikaze ... Namikaze ... ah, here it is," he declared, then read it silently before giving a small chuckle. "Real funny kid, what's your real name?"

"I told you, it's Namikaze Naruto," he answered smugly.

The opportunity to put this guy in his place seemed to have been just the tonic he'd needed to lift his mood.

"You mean to tell me a couple of punk ensigns fresh out of the academy managed to collect 48 million in bounties this quickly?" he questioned them, disbelief clearly showing on his face.

"Fifteen million for Buggy the Clown, seventeen million for Don Krieg, ten million for Krieg's first officer Gin," Naruto recited. "I'm not sure where the other six million came from to be honest, but it sounds about right."

"You were the one who captured Don Krieg?" Tashigi asked him. "I guess I shouldn't be surprised with how easily you handled Buggy the Clown."

"Would you like me to request the funds from Headquarters?" Mary asked, as she picked back up the list she'd been waiting for. "If I process the paperwork now, it should be cleared for you to pick up by the end of the day."

"Um, Sure," Naruto replied.

Twenty-four million huh? That would make a nice little bonus.

"Even if this is true, it doesn't change the fact that you ran off," Karl told him in an attempt to save face.

"It most certainly doesn't," a deep voice announced from right behind Naruto startling him.

It wasn't often he ran into someone who could sneak up on him like that.

"Rear Admiral Kakashi, sir," Karl called out, jumping to his feet and giving a salute.

Naruto, Kiba, and Tashigi quickly followed suit, standing at attention. The Rear admiral was a slender, silver haired man. Not much was visible of his face, with a mask covering his mouth and nose and an eyepatch over his left eye. It caused Naruto's imagination to run wild at what kind of injury would prompt him to cover so much.

"Please, be seated," Kakashi ordered them.

The five of them complied without question.

"Not you, Karl," Kakashi said to the bald man who had retaken his own seat. "This has nothing to do with you."

"Sorry, sir," Karl apologized, quickly getting to his feet and scurrying off.

"I apologize for making you wait so long," Kakashi told them. "But a pirate who had a grudge against me snuck into the base and took me hostage."

"Who was he?" Tashigi asked, as shocked as Naruto that a pirate would do something so brazen.

"Who was who?" Kakashi asked.

"The pirate that took you captive," Tashigi replied.

"Oh, I guess I'm not used to people believing my excuses," the rear admiral told them. "I'm afraid I hadn't thought that far ahead."

None of their group knew how to respond to that so they simply waited for Kakashi to continue. Instead he took a small orange book out of a coat pocket and began to read it silently as he stood there. After they'd been sitting patiently for about a minute Naruto finally worked up the nerve to interrupt.

"Excuse me sir," he said hesitantly. "I believe there was something you wanted to discuss with us."

"I wouldn't think you'd want to rush me," Kakashi answered, but did put his book away. "After all, these are some pretty serious charges being leveled against you. Do you have anything to say for yourself?"

"I just want to say that Nojiko and Ensign Tashigi here knew nothing about what we'd done," Naruto replied. "We didn't tell them a thing until your ship met us at the entrance to the Grand Line. And if you don't mind my asking, how did you know to have a ship waiting for us there?"

"I have an agent in Loguetown," he answered. "When I heard you were there, I figured you'd be heading for the Grand Line shortly. And since you don't have a marine ship, I knew that would be the only route you could take"

"You seem very well informed," Nojiko told him, finally breaking her silence.

"You look almost nervous," Kakashi replied. "Is there something you're worried I might know?"

"Nojiko hasn't done anything, sir," Naruto interrupted. "I take full responsibility for everything that happened."

"And do you have anything to add, Ensign Kiba?" he asked.

"I was fully aware of the actions I took," Kiba said firmly. "That said, it was all Naruto's idea."

Akamaru stood up and barked at Kiba accusingly.

"What? I told him I'd say that when he talked me into this," he told the dog defensively.

"Sir, if I might add something," Tashigi interjected. "Their methods may have been wrong, but you can't ignore the good they've done. They left East Blue a much safer place than they found it."

Tashigi had come to his defense? After verbally ripping him to shreds when she'd found out about this?

"She's right you know," Kakashi said. "The two of you deserve to be thrown out of the marines, but your results speak for themselves. I'd rather not loose two officers of your ability. So I'm going to just consider this matter settled."

"Really, sir?" Naruto asked hopefully.

"There is a price, however," Kakashi told them, "I'm not about to let you run around doing whatever you want anymore. From now on, you work for me, understood?"

"Yes, sir." Kiba and Naruto said nearly in unison.

"Good, because I have a mission already lined up for you," the Rear Admiral continued. "We've been receiving reports of citizens disappearing from Gunsmith Island. Based on information we've received, we believe those responsible operate from the nearby rabbit island. However, whenever we send marines to investigate, they find nothing."

"I'm not sure what you expect us to do," Naruto admitted. "Detective work isn't exactly our forte."

"I was getting to that," Kakashi responded. "We don't have any eternal poses that go directly to Rabbit Island. But if you wait for an hour on Gunsmith Island, a regular log pose will lock on to it. We believe they have lookouts on Gunsmith Island that warn them whenever a marine ship stops by."

"But our ship doesn't look like a marine vessel," Tashigi said knowingly.

"Exactly," Kakashi replied. "Obviously you'll also want to forgo your uniforms for the duration. You'll be in command of the mission, Naruto. I'd like you to stay on the crew as well Ensign Tashigi. Oh, and you're welcome to take the young lady there if she wants to go."

"I would like to stay on for now," Nojiko confirmed.

"Good," Kakashi responded. "I'll have an eternal pose sent to your ship. Ask Mary to find the quartermaster for you if you need any other supplies before you leave. Oh, and good luck lieutenant."

"Um, sir?" Naruto asked.

"You heard me correctly," Kakashi replied.

Wow, avoiding punishment was more than he'd expected, but a promotion too?

"Thank you, sir," Naruto said enthusiastically. "I'll do my best to deserve this honor."

"Um ... sir?" said Kiba as he got the Rear Admiral's Attention hopefully.

"Didn't you just say it was all Naruto's idea?" Kakashi asked in reply.

Kiba's silent fuming was the icing on the cake for a day that had already made a dramatic turn for the better.

* * *

Naruto had been busy loading supplies and preparing their ship for departure. In addition to the eternal pose for Gunsmith Island, they were given a second that lead back to G-5. They'd also been given a den den mushi that would allow them to communicate with the base should the need arise.

But shortly after the sun had set, G-5 as well had slipped over the horizon. And with the ship sailing smoothly along, Naruto found himself with some free time on his hands. So he left a clone at the helm and approached Tashigi, who was busy taking practice swings with her sword.

"I'd like to thank you for standing up for me with the Rear Admiral," Naruto told her. "Especially after how vigorously you expressed your opinion earlier."

"Oh that?" she asked with a touch of chagrin. "I may have overreacted a bit, but only because I expect a lot from you."

"Still, I really do appreciate it," he said honestly. "It takes a lot of courage to stand up to a superior officer. Yet you did it for my sake when you hardly even know me."

"I did owe you several favors," she replied. "I'm just glad I had the chance to pay one back."

Naruto didn't feel like he was owed any favors by the the young woman. Stopping Buggy and winning that naval exercise? Both of those cases were done more for his own sake. Helping her had simply been an unintended benefit. She on the other hand had stuck her neck out for him. Now he felt like he was the one who owed her.

"You want a sparring partner?" he asked. "I'm not very good with a sword, but I should be better practice then swinging at air."

"Actually," she answered, "Do you think you could get a couple of clones to help? I was thinking it would be good practice if all three of you attacked at once."

"Ah, training for Zoro?" Naruto asked, seeing her intent.

"Yeah," she confirmed. "Even if you're not very good, you're certainly fast. And if I can fight against three swordsmen at once, I should be able to handle one swordsman with three swords."

"I think I can manage that," he replied.

"Great," she said excitedly. "I'll go get the training swords."

Tashigi began to hurry off toward the stairs, Shigure still in hand. This made Naruto a bit nervous considering the trouble Tashigi sometimes had with stairs. Or walking for that matter.

"You may want to sheath your sword," he warned her.

"Thanks," she replied, doing as he suggested.

Unfortunately, in doing so she managed to trip over her sheath, sending her tumbling down the stairs she had only just reached. At least she'd succeeded in putting her sword away first, so she was probably fine. Indeed, she quickly returned with four wooden swords seeming little worse for the wear.

They began their training, discovering that despite her superior skill with the sword, handling Naruto and two of his clones at once was simply too much for her. He did his best to keep his blows light when they did land, but as the evening progressed he could tell her body was protesting the abuse. So he finally insisted on calling a stop to it.

"Thanks for your help," she told him after she'd managed to catch her breath a little. "But I think it's obvious I have a long way to go."

"Maybe I should start with just one clone helping me until you get used to that," he suggested, feeling sorry for the other marine.

"No," she insisted. "It has to be three. I want my body so used to fighting three swords it becomes instinct."

And Tashigi proved to be quite stubborn on that point. She insisted on fighting three on one the next night as well. And despite it not going any better than the night before for her, he had a feeling these training sessions would become a regular part of his routine.

* * *

Nojiko started her day in a great mood. They were no longer chasing after Luffy, so she could stop worrying about protecting Nami and just enjoy the adventure. And she was enjoying it. Even in the short time she'd been traveling, she'd seen sights she never would have imagined back in Cocoyashi Village.

As she came up the stairs to the early morning light, Nojiko found Naruto was the only other person up at the moment. He spotted Nojiko coming up the stairs and came to greet her.

"Nice timing," he said cheerfully. "We're almost to the island; have a look."

Naruto handed her the telescope and she examined the port they were rapidly approaching. It was a decent sized port. The village probably wasn't small either to warrant a port of this size. It was fascinating just looking at all the different designs for the ships that were docked.

But one particular design on the far side of the port made her heart skip a beat. It was mostly obscured from view, but that was definitely the Going Merry. Of all the islands in the Grand Line, why did they have to be here?

"I'm going to go wake the others," Naruto told her.

"No!" she insisted. "We only need to stay here for an hour before we can move on. We should let them sleep. Oh, and get rid of your clones, we wouldn't want to attract any attention. Remember, we don't want the lookouts to find us suspicious."

"I guess," Naruto said, and the two clones that were in sight vanished. "You're going to have to help me dock the ship though."

Nojiko still wasn't very good with ships. But she'd had some chance to practice, and the two managed to dock without incident. Almost the moment they had Nojiko grabbed Naruto's arm and started to drag him off the ship. She didn't want him hanging around so close to the Going Merry.

"Where are we going?" Naruto asked her.

"Shopping of course," she replied enthusiastically.

"Somehow I figured," he muttered. "At least let me grab my money."

"Fine, but hurry," she told him.

Going below deck he quickly returned, ready to go. Nojiko hurriedly dragged him deep into the town. As she got further from the dock without running across any of the Straw Hat Pirates she began to relax and take in the town a bit.

Gunsmith Island was certainly well named. Considering the number of gun stores in the area, she'd wager it was a major part of the town's economy. Growing interested she began to browse the wares which were put openly on display outside of shops or in small street stalls.

She seemed to be somewhat of a natural with guns, but the few they had on the ship were all quite cheap. It'd be nice to get something a little higher quality. At one stall her eyes stopped on a handgun that was painted sky blue, which certainly stood out from any other weapons in the area.

"I see the young miss has a good eye for quality," said the owner of the stall, a tall and wiry merchant. "This gun is the latest model from South Blue. It only arrived today, and I don't need to tell you how hard it is to find merchandise from South Blue."

"What makes this gun so special?" Nojiko queried.

"I'm glad you asked," he said enthusiastically. "In addition to being highly accurate, it fires bullets at more than twice the speed of any handgun you'll find elsewhere. And that's not all. Normally you have to load a gun one bullet at a time. And who wants to do that when you're being shot at? I certainly wouldn't."

Pulling out a small rectangular object of some sort, he held it out in front of them.

"This holds ten bullets," he told them. "And look how simple it is to reload the gun."

He then demonstrated how easily it slid into place, a fact that more than impressed Nojiko.

"And this fine piece of craftsmanship can be yours for only 11 million beli," he announced. "I'll even throw in this fine leather holster, a masterpiece in its own right."

The price sent her hopes crashing. As captivated as she'd been by the gun, Nojiko didn't even have a tenth of the money she would need.

"11 million for one gun?" Naruto asked, "That's nothing short of a scam."

"If this were an ordinary gun, I would agree with you," the merchant replied, not yet ready to give up the potential sale. "But this is far from an ordinary gun. Having this could very well be the difference between life and death. Surely the young lady's life is worth more than 11 million beli."

The merchant was a pretty good salesman, but he'd chosen his target poorly. Naruto wouldn't have 11 million beli anymore than she would.

"Of course not," Naruto shot back, "But I couldn't buy it if I wanted to."

Nojiko almost felt sorry at the merchant's crestfallen look. He'd probably been sure he was about to be 11 million beli richer. Although why he thought they'd be able to afford it she didn't know.

"I only brought 10 million with me," Naruto added.

The merchant's eyes immediately lit up again. Ten million? Where had Naruto gotten ... oh! The bounty money. If he'd grabbed that before he left, he should still have at least 14 million left back at the ship. So she wouldn't have to feel too guilty about manipulating him into buying her the gun.

"Well, it's barely more than I paid for it," the merchant said, doing a pretty convincing job of sounding reluctant. "But I will gladly sacrifice a mere million beli for the sake of such a beautiful young woman."

"I'd feel safer if I had a gun like that protect myself with," Nojiko added, doing her part to sell Naruto on the purchase.

"Look," Naruto told her, clearly still looking for a way to avoid the large purchase, "its biggest selling point are those special bullet clips. But if the gun is so rare, the bullets must be too. So what happens when you run out of them? It becomes a 10 million beli paperweight."

"I'm glad you brought that up," the merchant replied brightly, "You see, along with the gun, I also purchased a whole crate of ammunition."

Ducking down behind his stall, he struggled with a large box, but managed to lift it onto the counter. Opening the lid he showed that it was indeed filled with the same clips he'd demonstrated.

"Of course these are all included in the price," he told them. "If these are not enough to last the young lady a lifetime, I'm afraid I have badly misjudged her."

"See, there's nothing to worry about," Nojiko told him.

"This is still a lot of money," Naruto countered.

"Please?" she asked with her best puppy dog eyes.

Manipulating men like this was usually more of Nami's thing. But she'd seen her sister do it enough that she had a pretty good idea of how it was done. And she just had to have that gun. But either she still had to work on her technique or Naruto was stronger willed than she'd expected as he lasted several seconds before he gave in.

"Alright, already," he told them, "I'll buy the gun."

"Thank you!" Nojiko answered with genuine enthusiasm, latching on to the young man and give him a firm hug in gratitude.

"Not so hard," Naruto complained. "These things can't take much abuse."

Releasing him quickly she looked at him questioningly.

"By these things, you don't mean your clones do you?" she whispered so the merchant wouldn't overhear.

"Sorry," he whispered back. "When I went to get my money I did a quick switch. It's just that I remembered our last shopping trip, and even if we are keeping a low profile, I at least wanted to patrol around a little."

This was not good. Hurrying back to the merchant, she pulled out some of her own money and put it on the counter.

"Will you have this delivered to our ship for an extra 20,000?" she asked.

"Certainly," the man answered.

"There's no need for that. I can carry it," Naruto pointed out.

"No, you are going to tell the nice man how to find the ship and then wait right here," she ordered firmly. "I need to find a bathroom and then we're going to continue shopping."

Grabbing the gun and holster, she strapped them on and started running back in the direction of their ship.

"How can we not be done shopping?" Naruto asked her retreating form. "I just spent all my money."

And despite the fact she was ignoring him as she ran on, Nojiko really was grateful. Now she just hoped she wouldn't have to use his own gift against him.

* * *

"You could have let me sleep in a little longer," Kiba complained. "We're leaving in less than an hour."

Naruto had been bad enough when he was just a self-proclaimed captain. Now that he legitimately outranked him, he was going so far as to drag him out of bed far too early in the morning for some pointless patrol.

"We're only doing our duty as marines," Tashigi countered. "That's more important than a little sleep."

Tashigi being so gung ho about it did nothing to help his already poor mood. Kiba couldn't decide if he was more annoyed by workaholics or morning people at the moment. But seeing as his two companions each fell into both categories, he supposed it didn't really matter which came out on top.

They only needed to stay here an hour, and almost half of that was spent between docking the ship and rousing the two ensigns. So what was the point in patrolling? They'd barely have time to walk to the end of the pier before they needed to turn around and prepare for departure. What were the odds they'd find anything in that time?

Kiba was about to begin another round of complaining when Naruto roughly grabbed him and shoved him into an alley they were walking past. Kiba was going to give his friend a piece of his mind, but was brought up short when Naruto shushed him.

Then there was the fact that Tashigi had joined them under her own power and was now peeking intently around the corner. Even Akamaru was waiting patiently in the alley. That was enough that even in his sleep deprived state, Kiba realized this was probably important enough to hold off for an explanation.

"I saw the Straw Hat Pirates," Naruto whispered to Kiba. "But I don't think they've spotted us yet."

Tashigi gave up her spot to let Kiba have his own look. Sure enough, there they were only forty feet away or so. He saw Luffy, that Usopp kid, and the blond chef. It was only the throng of people on the pier that had prevented them from spotting the group earlier. He didn't see any sign of Zoro or his two bounty hunter friends, but the group appeared to be standing there chatting with two young women.

"You think one of those girls is Nami?" Kiba asked while moving away from the corner to let Naruto look.

"Maybe the blue haired girl?" Tashigi suggested. "The hair color might run in the family."

"No, I think its the other one," Naruto replied. "I can't see it clearly from here, but I got a glimpse of a tattoo on her arm that looked similar to Nojiko's."

"So what's the plan?" Kiba asked.

He didn't have much experience dealing with a hostage situation so he wasn't sure what the best way to proceed would be.

"I'm going to go in alone and distract them," Naruto answered. "Kiba, while their attention is on me, I want you to sneak up behind them and get Nami out of there."

"Understood," Kiba replied.

"And once she's safely away, we capture the rest of them," Naruto finished resolutely.

Giving them each a final look, he must have been satisfied with what he'd seen from them. Nodding, he ran out of the alley and toward the pirates. Running right past their group, he turned around and confronted Luffy, who immediately recognized him.

"Ah, Naruto," Luffy said cheerfully, "I've been thinking about it and I'm kind of jealous of your power. You know how when there's beef over here, and chicken over there, and you can't decide which one to eat first? You could just make a copy and eat both at the same time."

"Actually my clones don't eat," Naruto correct.

"Ah," Luffy answered knowingly. "They're mysterious copies."

That boy was just as strange as Kiba remembered. But their group looked sufficiently distracted so Kiba began to make his way through the crowd toward where Nami was standing.

"You never told me you were a pirate," Naruto replied, accusation clear in his voice.

"I didn't?" Luffy asked. "Well I'm telling you now. I'm going to be the Pirate King."

"Pirates?" a passerby asked worriedly. "They're pirates?"

The word quickly spread as panicked civilians cleared out of the area as fast as they could. The press of people going the other direction was making it difficult for Kiba to move forward. And once they were gone his cover would be too. He'd have to move quickly when that happened or he'd be spotted the first time one of them turned around.

"You won't be if I have anything to say about it," Naruto insisted. "I'm taking you down right here."

"So you want to be the Pirate King too?" Luffy responded. "I guess that makes us rivals. That's fine, but I'm not going to lose to you."

Kiba had finally reached the girl he assumed was Nami and grabbed her from behind, putting a hand over her mouth to prevent her from screaming.

"I'm here to help you," he whispered in her ear to calm her down.

But she was anything but calm. Grabbing the arm he had over her mouth, she twisted and threw Kiba over her shoulder so that he landed flat on his back.

"What are you doing?" he yelled accusingly propping himself up into a sitting position. "I'm trying to rescue you."

"The only person I need rescuing from is you!" she yelled back.

Had he gone after the wrong girl? Maybe it was the blue haired one after all. But said girl was now coming at him with some sort of spinning weapon tied to ring on her finger. She didn't look any more eager to be rescued than her orange haired companion.

He heard Akamaru bark a warning at him, and instinctively jumped to the side, avoiding a small explosion where he'd just been sitting. He turned to see Usopp had just fired something at him. But the odd thing was it had come from a slingshot. What kind of a pirate used a slingshot?

Akamaru had moved past Kiba and was now approaching the long nosed boy, growling as he did.

"Nice doggy ... Nice doggy," Usopp said nervously. "I'm not going to hurt you. Look I'm putting the weapon down."

Kiba saw Akamaru relax a bit as the boy slowly lowered his slingshot to the ground. But that had been just what Usopp had been waiting for as in a split second he loaded and fired off a shot at the dog.

"Tamago Boshi," he cried out as the projectile flew toward Akamaru, hitting him directly in the face.

The dog immediately let out a yelp of distress and began to run around frantically pawing at his nose.

"What did you do to Akamaru?" Kiba yelled angrily at the boy.

Not even waiting for an answer he charged Usopp, intent on avenging his partner. But Akamaru cut him off looking him directly in the eye. Kiba had been with Akamaru for so long, he could almost always figure out what his partner was trying to tell him. And this time there was no doubt at all. His eyes clearly said that this one was his.

Nodding to Akamaru he looked around for a new target. Naruto looked to have claimed Luffy already, so he should probably help out Tashigi. The other ensign had charged in and was surrounded by all three of the remaining pirates. And that was probably more than she could handle.

Locking onto the blue haired girl, he charged her, quickly ducking under a swipe she made with that weapon of hers. Grabbing her weapon arm, he was able to halt the spinning. He was about to finish her when a kick from Sanji on his arm forced him to release the girl.

"I won't let you harm so much as a hair on Vivi's head," he promised.

It looked like he would have to deal with this jerk first. But that was proving to be more easily said than done. The man was good. More than just good, he grudgingly admitted. He might have his hands full dealing with just him, and having to dodge that crazy Vivi chick's attacks at the same time wasn't going well for him.

He hadn't been able to get in one attack that hadn't been dodged or parried by Sanji, yet he'd taken a couple of glancing blows himself. And even glancing blows from the man's kicks had hurt, which spoke highly of the power behind them.

At least Tashigi seemed to be doing much better than him. The girl she was fighting was attempting to defend herself with a staff. But it was obvious to anyone who was watching that Tashigi had the upper hand.

And just as he was thinking that, Tashigi knocked the staff away from her opponent. Good, Tashigi could take her out of the fight, and then they'd see how well they could do two versus two. But back in his own fight, Kiba stumbled a bit, surprised that his most recent attempt to pummel the blond chef hadn't come close to hitting anything.

The cause was that his intended target had already taken off running the short distance to where Tashigi was fighting. He made it just in time to kick away the sword stroke that had been intended to finish the orange haired girl.

"Thanks, Sanji," she told her savior. "Now pay her back for trying to kill me."

"I'm sorry," the chef replied, "but I could never hit a lady."

"Kyah! You're so frustrating," she yelled at him, turning to run to where her staff had landed after being knocked away.

Tashigi gave chase, Sanji quickly following behind the two of them in order to continue protecting the now unarmed woman. Kiba almost failed to dodge an attack from Vivi as distracted as he was, but he still refused to return his focus to his attacker. This was his opportunity.

Putting every bit of effort into his legs he could manage, he ran after the cook himself. Tashigi, meanwhile, had caught up to her target and made an attempt to slice through her from behind. But Sanji had pulled up next to the blue haired ensign before her assault.

In a flash, he dropped down onto his hands, flipping into a handstand as he spun around and hooked Tashigi's arm with his foot, pulling her strike off target. But this was just what he had been waiting for. Vivi's call of warning from behind him as too late, as he reached the cook before he had righted himself and treated the man to a kick of his own.

With a powerful punt, he hit the side of Sanji's neck. Following through with the motion, the cook went spinning sideways down the dock, coming to a stop less than a foot from the edge of the water. This wasn't going to be a good day for the man, but at least his luck had kept him from drowning.

But now that he was down, they shouldn't have any trouble finishing off the two girls. And Tashigi had wasted no time going after the staff wielding girl again, who was doing all she could just to avoid decapitation.

"Zoro!" the girl yelled out in desperation. "Wake up and get down here you worthless idiot!"

But her pleas for help went unanswered, and Kiba returned his attention to Vivi. She had pulled a second one of those weapons from somewhere and was now wielding one with each hand. Kiba would have to approach this carefully. Dodging several of her assaults he finally saw an opening.

One attack went wide and before she could recover, he dashed into her guard, ducking under the followup swing from her other hand. With nothing left to stop him, he planted his fist into her gut, knocking Vivi flat on her rear, gasping from the blow.

"Do you surrender or should I continue?" Kiba asked her smugly. "I held back, but I can hit a lot harder than that."

"Interesting," she answered when she was able to speak again. "But how are you at taking blows?"

That was an odd response. Was it supposed to be some kind of a threat? Suddenly he found himself flying through the air, only then registering a throbbing pain in the side of his head. In his dazed state he attempted a controlled landing, but wasn't very successful as he plowed through a street stall of some type.

After taking a few moments to collect himself, he stood up to see Sanji standing there, only just lowering his foot from the kick that had been the cause of Kiba's involuntary flight.

"I'll never forgive any man that hits a woman," the chef declared angrily. "Now prepare yourself, because this fight is about to get serious."

* * *

Naruto watched Kiba slam into the ground after his failed rescue attempt. He never should have trusted Kiba with that task. Nami probably thought he was some kind of pervert grabbing her like that. Well, he'd have to leave that situation to his crew. He still had Luffy to deal with. So he took a stance and prepared to fight.

"You don't have a weapon?" Luffy asked. "You can't hurt me with your fists, you know."

"Funny," Naruto replied, "I was about to say the same thing to you."

This could be a good chance to use his Tekkai to demoralize his opponent. The boy was used to being invulnerable to blunt attacks. Let's see how he liked a taste of his own medicine.

"Of course I can," Luffy insisted. "I'm the rubber man. Your power is to make mysterious copies. Did you forget what your power was or something?"

"Then go ahead and try," Naruto challenged.

"Gomu Gomu no Pistol!" Luffy shouted as he sent out his first attack.

But Naruto had no trouble absorbing the impact with his Tekkai.

"Eh?" Luffy asked. "Why didn't that work? I'm not the one who forgot my power am I? No, my arms just stretched, so I must be a rubber man. Eh, thinking about this is too confusing, I'm just going to hit you harder."

Not for the first time, Naruto had to wonder if this kid was actually this stupid, or just messing with his mind.

"Gomu Gomu no Rifle!" he yelled as he sent out a more powerful attack.

Naruto grunted when it hit but managed to avoid giving off any other sign of how hard the blow had been. That punch was like being hit by one of Garp's cannonballs. No, it might even be stronger, since he had little doubt he'd improved the strength of his Tekkai since then. But he could still handle it, and soon Luffy would realize how hopeless it was.

"Gomu Gomu no Gatling!" Luffy cried out, sending a rapid stream of punches after Naruto.

But Naruto only grinned. He could hit him with as many of those as he wanted. Neither was as strong as that rifle of his, so he could easily handle them. And Luffy seemed to be getting very frustrated by the situation.

"Gomu Gomu no Bazooka!" the pirate captain screamed at the top of his lungs as he pulled back for a giant double handed punch.

This was the strongest attack Naruto had seen Luffy use against Krieg. If he could resist this his opponent should be demoralized. But some instinct in his mind told him the attack was simply too strong, urged him to get out of the way. Trusting his instincts, he jumped to the side, narrowly avoiding the attack. Luffy retracted his arms and stood there with a huge grin on his face.

"What are you smiling about?" Naruto snarled, "You still haven't hurt me in the least."

"You jumped out of the way," Luffy answered. "That means this is my win."

Even more annoying than his words, was that Naruto couldn't help but feel he was right. In refusing to take the last blow had lost that little challenge. But he would still win the fight. His fists may not hurt his opponent but let's see how much fight he had in him after Naruto had tied that rubber body of his into a knot.

"Ah, no fair, Usopp," Luffy called out to his crew member. "I want to play with the doggy too!"

"What part of this looks like playing to you?" Usopp yelled back angrily from within Akamaru's large jaws.

Luffy may let himself get distracted, but that didn't mean Naruto had to wait for his opponent. He summoned four clones around himself. Although he was confused for a second as it seemed somehow more strenuous than usual. But that was probably just his imagination.

His Tekkai might not have been strong enough to withstand Luffy's strongest attack, but it was time to show him how lacking he was in speed. Naruto and his four clones all rushed toward Luffy. But the pirate captain wasn't about to go down without a fight.

He threw punch after punch at the approaching targets, but Naruto's Soru enhanced speed proved too great for his opponent. Pistols, rifles, even that gatling move of his had failed to land a single hit. And to be honest, Naruto was deliberately drawing this out as a small revenge for their earlier challenge.

"Hold still and let me hit you!" Luffy ordered.

Naruto was pleased to see the frustration was getting to him. But he'd had enough playing around, now he needed to finish this. Signaling his clones, the five of them all converged on Luffy. Victory was as good as his.

"Gomu Gomu no Hanabi!" Luffy shouted.

His opponent began spinning sending a flurry of punches and kicks at a faster rate than anything he'd done before. But he was still being naive. It was a good attack but it just wasn't fast enough to be a threat to him, as he proved by dodging every blow.

However, a flood of memories brought to his attention the unexpected detail that three of his four clones had been destroyed. But how had that happened? He could believe one of them had slipped up and made a mistake, but there was no way that attack could have taken out three.

After he'd had a moment to process the new memories, he realized exactly how it had happened. Somehow his clones weren't quite as fast as he was. The Rokushiki required the user to be a master of their own body. And something about the sensations of being a clone just felt a little off.

Not surprising for a body that lacked hunger or thirst, a body that didn't even feel pain. And those unfamiliar sensations had prevented him from fully utilizing Soru. He wished he'd discovered this fact sooner, but Luffy had been the first opponent to push his clones to move so quickly.

"That's three down and only two to go," Luffy said proudly.

In response Naruto simply summoned replacements for the three that had been destroyed.

"That's not fair!" Luffy protested. "Usopp, tell him that's not fair."

But his long nosed subordinate was busy lying unmoving on the ground beneath Akamaru, who was sniffing the fallen body.

"Stop ignoring me and tell him that's not fair," Luffy ordered. "I already beat those three, that means they're out, right?"

"Stop yelling at me you idiot," Usopp lifted his head to shout back. "I'm trying to play dead here."

He quickly realized his mistake as the now very angry dog above him began to growl.

"I mean, your noise briefly woke me from unconsciousness but now everything is going black again," he claimed, laying his head back down and going still.

But Akamaru wasn't about to fall for the same trick twice. He was glad at least one of them was doing well. But the revelation about his clones' limited speed made this much harder. If he couldn't reliably count on his clones to avoid taking hits, it could get down to grappling one versus one against Luffy.

That is if he were to stick to his original plan of tying the boy up. It could still work, once he had ahold of an arm or a leg, it should greatly reduce the speed of his attacks. But he couldn't keep up Tekkai while moving.

And close range combat against an opponent who could do so many odd things with his body, was immune to physical blows, and packed a horribly strong wallop was a large risk. If only he'd swallowed his pride and brought a knife or something. He could have diced Luffy to pieces with ease by now.

Although, there might be another way to get the same sort of effect. A properly performed Shigan could tear right through a body. It might be enough to wound even Luffy. He couldn't reliably do a Shigan yet, but it was worth a try.

"Stop complaining," he taunted Luffy, trying to provoke an attack. "You still haven't even managed to hit the real me."

"Which one is the real you?" he replied in confusion.

"I am you moron," Naruto yelled back.

Naruto had been trying to provoke Luffy and instead he was the one losing his cool. The boy was just so frustrating.

"Well then, see if you can dodge this," Luffy challenged. "Gomu Gomu no Gatling."

Luffy was now focused entirely on the real Naruto, which suited him just fine. As he dodged the attacks he rapidly fired off Shigans from both hands, hitting the extending arms repeatedly as he danced around them.

"Quit doing that," Luffy complained. "It stings."

It looked like the move might have potential if he ever fully mastered it. But causing a stinging sensation against his opponent hardly seemed like a fair tradeoff as Naruto examined his two badly sprained pointer fingers.

He supposed that's what he deserved for using the technique in combat when he hadn't even fully learned it. But it looked like it would have to be his original plan, risky or not. In a way Naruto was looking forward to the risk. This was already the most exhilarating experience of his life.

"Stop!" Nojiko yelled out. "Everyone stop fighting!"

When had Nojiko arrived? Naruto briefly surveyed the area to see how the rest of his crew had been doing. It looked like Usopp was truly unconscious this time. His partner didn't seem to have fared as well, only now pulling himself up from the remains of a street stand.

Tashigi appeared uninjured and seemed to have been locked in combat with the girl he'd assumed to be Nami, near where Nojiko had just appeared. Why would they have still been fighting? Was she not Nami? But now that Nojiko was here he should be able to get some answers, and he hurried over himself to make certain he didn't miss any.

"Nojiko?" the orange haired girl asked in surprise. "What are you doing here?"

"Nami," Nojiko answered, confirming the girl she was now hugging was her sister. "I'm glad I made it in time."

Something wasn't right here. Nojiko looked awfully calm for a girl who was surrounded by the pirates who had kidnapped her sister. And piecing the clues he had together, Naruto was pretty sure he knew just what it was that was off.

"Your sister wasn't kidnapped, was she?" Naruto asked accusingly.

Nojiko's guilt stricken face was all the answer he needed.

"Kidnapped?" Nami asked. "Who are these people and what have you been telling them?"

"I believe I can answer that," Naruto replied. "She's been giving us false information, trying to keep us bringing you to justice."

"Is this true?" Tashigi questioned Nojiko.

If anything, Tashigi actually looked more upset than Naruto felt. He wasn't sure if she'd even noticed it, but she was now pointing her sword at Nojiko rather than Nami. Nojiko again remained silent, eyes downcast.

"Why would you help the pirates that attacked your village," Kiba asked, having wandered over himself.

"It's not like that," Nojiko insisted, finally finding her voice. "They saved us from Arlong's pirates. They're heroes in our village."

"Even if that's true," Naruto countered, "they still attacked Captain Nezumi and his men."

"Yeah, we attacked him," Nami yelled back unapologetically. "But he was in it with Arlong, taking bribes to look the other way. Then, after _we_ took out Arlong and his crew, he showed up trying to rob the village one last time. What were we supposed to do, let him?"

"That's a lie," Tashigi accused her, "No marine captain would behave in such a fashion."

"Actually," Naruto corrected her, "I've actually met the man, and I just might believe him capable of something like that."

"You're not just going to take their word for it and let them go are you?" Tashigi questioned him.

"Of course not," Naruto replied, then turned to address Nami. "If you've truly done nothing wrong, then turn yourselves in. We'll see that you get a fair trial."

"Excuse me," the blue haired girl interrupted. "There's something else you should know before you try to arrest them. My name is Nefertari Vivi, princess of Arabasta."

"Pull the other one," Kiba snorted. "You don't expect us to believe a princess is hanging out with a bunch of pirates."

"Are you calling Vivi a liar?" Sanji asked, getting right up in Kiba's face.

"It's alright, Sanji," Vivi assured him. "It is hard to believe. As for why I'm with them, they're helping me get back to Arabasta safely."

"Get back safely?" Naruto asked. "Are you in some kind of trouble?"

"A criminal organization by the name of Baroque Works is trying to incite a rebellion in my country," she informed him. "I infiltrated the organization and discovered the identity of its leader, but was found out in the process. It's imperative I get back to my father with this information."

She seemed earnest enough to Naruto, but he'd already been fooled once by Nojiko, so he wasn't about to take Vivi's words at face value. Still, he couldn't completely discount the possibility either.

"If you're telling the truth you won't mind coming with us," Naruto told her. "After we confirm your story, I'm sure the marines will be more than happy to ensure you arrive home safely."

"Hey, I've got a lot of money riding on this job," Nami complained. "I'm not going to let you steal my client that easily."

"Besides that there's no time," Vivi added. "How long will it take for you to confirm my identity? And how soon could you spare a ship to escort me? Every delay just gives them more to send assassins after me. And they could make their final move in Arabasta at any time."

She wasn't making this easy for Naruto. What if she was telling the truth? Could he risk that? On the other hand you can't make it as a marine officer if you believe every sob story a pirate feeds you.

"What are your opinions, Tashigi?" he asked the Ensign who had been surprisingly quiet about the story.

"I hate to say it, but her story is plausible," she answered. "The princess of Arabasta has been missing and she does appear to be about the right age. I've also heard there's been a good deal of unrest in Arabasta lately. Of course it's also perfectly believable that pirates' loyalties could be bought for the right sum."

"I say we let them go," Kiba opined. "Doesn't seem to me they've done anything wrong. They helped us save the Baratie, saved Cocoyashi Village, and now they're helping a princess save her kingdom? Sounds like they deserve a medal more than prison."

"That's absurd," Tashigi protested. "Whatever they've done they're still pirates. And just because their story is plausible doesn't change the fact that we have a duty to capture them. We'll take Vivi to Arabasta ourselves if we have to."

"Are you forgetting that we have our own mission?" Kiba argued back. "Considering our history, I'm not about to risk disobeying orders and going off on our own."

"We can contact the Rear Admiral," Tashigi countered. "I'm sure he'll understand the importance of the situation and let us go."

"And what about the kidnappers?" Kiba asked. "We just let them go about their merry way? If allow the Straw Hat Pirates to handle Vivi we can solve both problems at once."

"That's enough," Naruto ordered. "You've both made your points."

"So what's your decision then?" Kiba asked.

That was a good question. What was his decision? Seeing him deliberating, Vivi decided to make one last plea.

"I'm begging you," she pleaded, getting down on her knees. "Millions of lives are at stake."

"Please just let them go," Nojiko added kneeling next Vivi. "I swear to you they're good people."

Looking at the two emotional young women, Naruto knew he just couldn't give the order to start fighting again.

"Don't think I'll forget you're pirates," he told Nami resolutely. "If I run into you again after you've delivered Vivi I won't hesitate to capture you. Now get out of here before I change my mind."

"You're welcome to try," Sanji challenged. "I'll be looking forward to teaching this barbarian some manners."

Kiba snarled back but left it at that. And Tashigi didn't look very pleased with his decision, but he took it as a good sign that she wasn't openly protesting. At least everyone else seemed happy with how things turned out.

"Thank you very much," Vivi said gratefully, standing up only to bow to him. "My entire country owes you a debt."

"Will you guys keep it down out there?," a new voice called out from a nearby ship. "I'm trying to sleep here."

The voice belonged to Zoro, who stood on a small ship docked right next to where they were standing. One with a very familiar straw hat as part of the design painted on the flag. Well, it was good to know what their ship really looked like.

"Now you show up?" Nami asked angrily. "Where were you when I was almost killed?"

"Huh?" Zoro asked, hopping off the ship and landing next to them. "Are we fighting or something?"

"Zoro!" Tashigi shouted, brandishing her weapon at the former bounty hunter.

"What are you doing here?" Zoro asked after seeing her.

"Are we ready to start fighting again?" Luffy yelled out from behind the group. "Because I was getting bored."

He'd somehow all but forgotten about the boy. Luffy was still standing a couple dozen yards away not having moved from the position he'd occupied when their fight was interrupted. Almost as if he'd been waiting for them to continue where they'd left off.

"No! There is no more fighting," Nami yelled, making sure to look meaningfully at both Luffy and Zoro. "We're all done fighting. Now get over here Luffy."

They both complied, and even Tashigi stood down, so it looked like they'd be avoiding further incident. Meanwhile Nojiko was hesitantly approaching him.

"Now that I've been found out, I guess this is goodbye," she said. "I just want you to know that I really do feel bad about deceiving you. Oh, and I enjoyed our time together."

"You can come with us, Nojiko," Nami offered. "Right Luffy?"

"I don't really understand what's going on," he answered, "but okay, she can join our crew."

"Welcome aboard, Nojiko-chan," Sanji said enthusiastically. "I'll cook a special welcoming feast in your honor."

It might be easiest to just allow the sisters reunite, but Naruto had no intention of letting things end like that.

"You don't have to leave if you don't want to," Naruto told her.

"With all due respect, sir, I have to protest," Tashigi responded. "She's been lying to us and deliberately attempting to sabotage our efforts."

"Are you suggesting we give her the choice of joining pirates or being abandoned on an island far from her home?" Naruto asked. "Because I'd rather not have to think I all but forced someone into piracy."

"I'm sorry," Tashigi replied. "I guess you're right. I have no further objections at the moment."

"Do you really mean that?" Nojiko asked. "You're not just going to dump me somewhere as soon as they leave?"

"You can stay as long as you'd like," Naruto assured her. "I promise."

"Our offer is still open too," Nami pointed out hopefully.

"Yeah, don't trust him," Sanji advised desperately. "He has the look of a liar."

"Sorry Nami," Nojiko told her sister, "but I think it's better if we have our own adventures. We'll get to see twice as many things that way and we can tell each other all about them. Besides, I'm fine with having a dog for a crew member, but I don't think I like the idea of having a captain with the intellect of an animal."

"She's calling you stupid," Luffy said to Naruto with a laugh.

"It was you she was calling stupid," Nami pointed out, getting a noticeable tick in her eye.

"Really? Then I take back what I said," Luffy replied petulantly. "She can't join my crew after all."

"She wasn't going to join anyway!" Nami yelled at him. "What part of this conversation were you listening to?"

Sighing, Nami turned back to her sister.

"Why do I suddenly get the feeling I ended up with the raw end of this deal?" she asked.

"I'm sure you'll be fine," Nojiko told her, then looking at her sister she embraced her in a hug. "Good luck out there."

"You too," Nami replied, returning the hug warmly.

"Oh, I almost forgot," Nojiko, stated.

Releasing the hug, she marched over to Zoro and without warning sent a fist into his gut.

"Do you want something?" Zoro asked nonchalantly, not at all phased by the surprise attack.

Apparently, this was not the right answer as Nojiko followed up with a knee to his groin, a move that made Naruto wince sympathetically. This attack had a much greater effect, as the swordsman fell the ground in pain.

"That's for Loguetown," Nojiko told him angrily.

"What did you do to my sister, you monster?" Nami shouted, slamming her staff down over the head of the green haired young man.

"What's wrong with you two?" Zoro managed to gasp out. "I never even saw her in Loguetown. I just bought some swords and then ran around trying to find Luffy. That was it."

Naruto didn't know what that was about. But since they had nothing else to do here, it was time they got back to their own mission.

"I believe our hour is almost up," he declared. "It's time we head back to our ship."

His crew turned to follow, Akamaru trotting after them carrying Usopp in his mouth.

"You'll have to leave him behind," Naruto told his canine subordinate.

Akamaru whined, but followed orders, dropping the unconscious boy to the ground and following after them. With the adrenaline fading, his sprained fingers were really starting to bother him. He'd be glad to get back to the ship and find something to take his mind of the pain. But why did he have the feeling he was forgetting something?

* * *

Naruto waited by the gun stand growing more and more frustrated. Well, it would be more accurate to say Naruto's clone, but it was odd to think of himself as anything other than Naruto. Still, how long did a simple bathroom break take?

It had already been more than half an hour. They should be getting the ship ready to leave by now. Maybe she'd realized it was getting late and went back on her own. Naruto was about to dismiss himself to let the real Naruto know what was going on when a commotion caught his attention.

A struggling young woman about his own age was being dragged through the street by a group of men. She had blonde hair put up in a ponytail, a rather revealing purple outfit, and a mean right hook if you asked the thug she'd just caught with it.

But it was clear she needed help, and Naruto obliged. There were four men, counting the one picking himself off the ground after taking the girl's punch. Naruto had taken out two of the men before any of them even realized they were under attack. The first with a simple shoulder throw, and the second with a roundhouse kick to the head.

The remaining two temporarily forgot about their captive and move to either side of him in an attempt to get him in pincer attack. Both charged straight at him, but the effort was in vain. To him they appeared to be moving painfully slow, and he just ran out of the way at the last second letting them collide with each other.

While they were still dazed, he walked up to them, grabbed a head with each hand, and slammed them together. He then released them and let the two bodies fall limply to the floor. The man he had thrown earlier got up and looked at him fearfully.

"Gato will hear about this," he promised. "You just signed your own death warrant."

The man then scurried off. After he'd left he saw the girl he had just rescued approached him looking surprisingly calm for what she'd just been through.

"Thanks for the help," she told him. "I'm glad someone had the decency to come to the aid of a woman in need."

She looked around accusingly at the numerous people who had been watching the scene as she said that. In response to her glares, most of the gawkers moved off to other tasks.

"I'm Yamanaka Ino, of Yamanaka Industries," she told him. "Perhaps you've heard of us?"

"I'm afraid not," he replied. "I'm Naruto by the way."

"Well, we're big in South Blue," she told him. "I'm currently working on expanding our markets, but it seems some people take offense to a little competition."

Pausing for a second she looked over him thoughtfully.

"You know, I could actually use someone like you," she said. "You wouldn't happen to be looking for a job would you?"

"I'm actually in the middle of searching for someone," he told her. "And I'm not really looking for a job."

"There could be more of Gato's men out there," she pointed out. "You wouldn't leave a girl who had just escaped a kidnapping attempt to try to make it back to her ship on her own would you?"

"Okay, I'll escort you," he told her. "But only back to your ship."

"Great, right this way," she said, grabbing his arm and pulling him along toward the pier.

Clones didn't have much in the way of sensations, but he still had a bad feeling about what he'd just gotten himself into.

* * *

**AN**

With the longer wait between chapters this time, some of you may have been worried I was losing steam. But while that may yet happen, this time it was simply the fact that this chapter is longer then my first three put together.

Anyway, I finally got to put a good action scene into this chapter. Well, maybe you guys should be the deciders of whether it's good or not. But at the very least it was a fight where they didn't completely overwhelm their opponents.

For those who are wondering, this meeting with Luffy's crew is supposed to take place after Whiskey Peak but before Little Garden. And some may be disappointed, but as it appears, I'm not going to be having Naruto's crew take a large role in the Arabasta arc. Instead I have something original planned that you'll begin to get a glimpse of in the next chapter.

And finally, the reviews part of my comments. Chapter 6 was a big dropoff from Chapter 5 getting barely a third of the reviews. But you'll be happy to know I'm not the type to hold my chapters hostage for reviews. As long as I remain interested in the story, I'll keep writing even if I'm not getting any.

Actually, it might not have been the best idea to admit that. Is it too late to go back and pretend I'm depressed and going to delete the story unless I get at least X number of reviews per chapter? It is? Oh well, I'll try to plan my lies out in advance next time.


	8. Chapter 8

Naruto watched as Gunsmith Island retreated behind them. His mind was still largely occupied by the unsatisfactory performance of his clones in the fight with Luffy. But there might be something he could do about that. If the he couldn't use Soru properly with his clones because his body felt off, then he would just need to get used to the sensations of fighting as a clone.

Leaving Kiba at the helm, he gathered four clones around him. Three he set to just practicing Soru, getting a feel for it. The final one he left to meditating. As for himself, despite his protesting fingers, Naruto set to work practicing Shigan. At least the movements behind it, he wasn't going to try it on anything solid until his fingers were recovered.

But he was able to spend a lot of time getting a feel for the process. His biggest problem was that with how natural throwing punches was for him, his form tended to mimic his punching form. But using the Shigan wasn't about putting his body behind the blow or getting maximum power. It was about a quick, sharp motion.

Occasionally he would dismiss his clones and resummon so they could share what they'd learned. He was a bit disappointed by how slow the progress was going. It didn't look like this was going to be something he could master in one day. But he wouldn't let that dissuade him.

Soon enough Nojiko called them for lunch. She'd prepared some sort of seasoned fish for them. It turned out to be quite good as usual. He was glad that her skill at cooking was one area she hadn't deceived them on. Tashigi however, had yet to touch her food.

"I promise you, it's not poisoned," Nojiko told her.

"Still, I think I'd rather just grab something myself," Tashigi answered coldly, walking out of the ship's small dining area.

It seemed Tashigi wasn't yet ready to let this whole thing go.

"I want a couple of your clones to train with this afternoon," Kiba requested.

"I'm kind of busy with my own training," Naruto replied.

He was making slow enough progress as it was, so he wasn't eager to lend them out at the moment.

"You're not the only one who didn't like how that fight went," Kiba argued. "I owe that jerk for the sneak attack he got me with. You don't expect me to practice without anyone to spar with, do you?"

"And getting yourself beat up is better practice?" Naruto teased his friend. "Are you trying to learn Tekkai or something?"

"You just better make sure you keep the clones coming," Kiba shot back. "I'm going to be tearing through them pretty quickly."

"I still haven't agreed to give you any," Naruto pointed out.

"It's not like you were even using all of them," Kiba argued. "I was watching you, and you had one just sitting around doing nothing."

As much as he would love explaining the concept of meditation to his stubborn crew member, Naruto decided it'd be less of a hassle to just go along with him.

"Fine," Naruto agreed. "Two clones, but only until dinner."

After lunch, Naruto went back to training. At least it wasn't a complete waste lending Kiba clones to spar with, they got some training themselves. But with another of his clones taking over the helm, that left only one he had direct control over for training purposes.

But he made due with what he had, continuing his own training as well. It also became clear to him over the course of the afternoon that Tashigi was none-too-subtly keeping an eye on Nojiko. And when dinner came around, she again passed on eating the meal Nojiko had prepared.

It looked like he was going to have to step in before this got out of hand. Their evening training session seemed like a good opportunity. And she seemed to be doing a little better than normal, so maybe that would put her in a good mood.

Although it was possible that was only because he was a bit distracted trying to figure out the best way to approach the Nojiko issue. When they finally called a stop the training, he decided he shouldn't put this off any longer. And no one else was on the deck to make this any more awkward.

"It seems you're somewhat uncomfortable around Nojiko now, why is that?" he asked.

Tashigi paused briefly, most likely considering her words carefully.

"I don't trust her," she admitted. "I can understand not wanting to strand her on an island, but we should find a ship to take her home as soon as possible."

"I promised her she could stay as long as she wanted," Naruto reminded Tashigi.

"I know," she responded, "but I don't understand why you did that."

"Tell me, can you cook?" Naruto asked.

"Excuse me?" she said questioningly.

"Can you cook?" Naruto repeated.

"I'm not exactly very good with fire," she finally answered meekly.

"Kiba and I are pretty lousy cooks as well," Naruto told her. "After having had Nojiko on board I don't want to go back to the kind of meals we ate before."

"You can't seriously be saying that's the reason you told her she could stay, can you?" Tashigi questioned with a dangerous glint in her eyes.

"I'd like to say there was a much deeper reason," Naruto replied. "But there really isn't much else. But the better question is, what reason is there to send her away?"

"She's a pirate sympathizer," she answered firmly. "We have to constantly watch our own backs as long as we have her on board."

"I see no reason to believe she'd give us trouble with any crew other than the Straw Hat Pirates," Naruto countered, "And it's not even our mission to hunt them down anymore. The Grand Line is a big place. We may never even see them again."

"But there's still no telling what she might do if we did run into them," she argued. "She might even decide it's safest to just get rid of us now. One less group of marines hunting her sister."

"Nojiko is pretty good with a gun, right?" Naruto asked.

"She's more than just good," Tashigi told him. "She probably lied about her experience in that matter as well. But that's just one more reason she's dangerous to keep around."

"Well, she had a gun on her when she stopped our fight," he informed Tashigi. "So if she's as dangerous as you think, what was to stop her from just shooting one of us in the back rather than halting the fight?"

"I don't know," Tashigi said in frustration. "Maybe she just didn't want to risk any witnesses. She might be bolder out at sea."

"Look," Naruto said firmly, "it's prudent not to trust anything she says about the Straw Hat Pirates. But I don't want you following her around the ship or refusing to eat food she's prepared anymore. Understood?"

"Understood," she confirmed.

"Good," Naruto replied. "Then I'm going to turn in for the night."

Deciding the situation was taken care of, Naruto turned and began walking for the stairs, intent to follow through on his plan for sleep.

"You're pretty good at that," Tashigi said from behind him.

"Excuse me?" Naruto asked, turning around to face her again.

"Dealing with your subordinates I mean," she clarified. "There's just some quality about you that makes people want to follow your orders."

"Is that so?" Naruto asked, genuinely pleased to hear her say so.

"Captain Smoker was the same way," she added. "It's like you're both natural leaders or something."

"I certainly hope that's the case," Naruto said cheerfully. "I plan to go much further than lieutenant."

"I have a feeling you'll do that," Tashigi replied.

"Thanks," Naruto responded simply, "now I really do need that sleep. We should be arriving at Rabbit Island tomorrow and I want to be ready for whatever we run into."

"I'm going to take some swings with Shigure before I turn in," Tashigi answered. "But good night,"

The day must have been even more exhausting than he'd realized, as Naruto's head had barely touched the pillow when sleep claimed him.

* * *

Naruto climbed above deck to greet the morning light. He was glad to see he was still a fast healer, as there was hardly a twinge from his fingers after a night of rest. Nojiko had risen before him today, so he called out a greeting to her.

"Good, you're awake," she told him. "I've been wanting a chance to talk to you alone."

"You could have spoken to one of my clones," he told her, pointing to the figures that had been running the ship and getting a little training in overnight.

"I know," she replied. "But it just seems a little odd talking about something serious with one of them. I'd rather talk to the real you."

She then paused for a moment as she examined him.

"You are the real you, right?" Nojiko queried.

"Last I checked," he answered with a smirk.

"Well, basically I understand you don't want me to become a pirate," she began, "So it makes sense you offered to let me stay. What I don't get is, why aren't acting more like Tashigi?"

"You noticed that, huh?" Naruto replied.

"It was kind of hard to miss," she confirmed. "Given what I did, you should be angry too. So why aren't you?"

"I don't think it's so odd," Naruto answered. "Kiba doesn't seem at all mad at you either."

"It's pretty easy to guess what Kiba's motivations are," Nojiko responded with a grimace.

"But you think mine are different?" he queried.

"Maybe they're not," Nojiko answered. "You are male as well, after all. But I get the feeling there's more to it with you. And either way, I want to hear the reason from your own mouth."

Naruto hadn't really had any desire to have a deep discussion about his feelings. But she seemed determined to get her answer, and he didn't see any real reason to brush her off.

"Did you know my father was an admiral?" he asked.

"No," she answered. "Is he the reason you joined the marines?"

"That's right," Naruto replied. "But back to the point, there was one time my father disobeyed a direct order. And it was a pretty important order too."

"Was he punished for it?" Nojiko asked, obviously intrigued by the tale.

"Well, they demoted him," he admitted. "But he was already dead at the time. Anyway, the important thing is why he disobeyed the order and gave his life. It was to protect his village. To protect me."

"So you see," Naruto continued, "it's true you deceived me and I should be upset with you for that. But you did it for the sake of your sister. So how could I blame you for that and still defend what my father did?"

"I see," she said solemnly. "Well, I better get started on breakfast. I don't want to listen to Kiba's complaints if there's nothing to eat when he wakes up."

With that Nojiko turned and hurried off the galley. That was a little more awkward than he'd hoped for. Maybe he should have just made some excuse up rather than answering. But he supposed it was still better than her thinking him no better than Kiba.

* * *

Rabbit Island looked to be much smaller than Gunsmith Island. There was a single dock made to hold no more than three ships at once. In addition, the small town it serviced looked quite dilapidated. Probably just the sort of place criminals would like to hide out. One ship was already docked at the island, a small sailboat of the type designed to be run by a single person.

Naruto's clones were more than capable of docking the ship themselves. So Naruto and his crew were all on deck waiting to depart as the ship pulled in. That was when they saw a group of people walking their direction. It appeared to be one man leading three bound captives.

"Do you think that's our kidnapper?" Kiba asked from beside him.

Taking a quick peak through the telescope Naruto got a better look at the group. It was a black haired young man leading the captives, the three of whom were all large rough looking men.

"If he is," Naruto stated, "he seems to be kidnapping the ugliest people he can find."

"Whatever he's doing, we should probably investigate," Tashigi suggested.

Naruto agreed, and the entire crew disembarked, approaching the man who was still headed in their direction. But it seemed they weren't the only ones intent on confronting their target. A second young man was hurrying after him from behind. The new arrival was a tall brown haired man that looked to be about the same age as their target.

Although it was harder to tell with dark sunglasses and the high collared coat that obscured his face almost up to the nose. He reached the man leading the prisoners before they did, but Naruto and his crew were close enough to overhear their conversation. Especially given that there was no attempt made to keep their volume low.

"You were supposed to stay and guard the ships," the taller man accused him.

"No, you told me to guard it, but I never agreed to do any such thing," the black haired one responded.

"But you made no objection, which generally implies consent," his companion argued back. "Now some of them escaped, and in my ship no less."

"Look," he replied crossly, "I only agreed to work with you because you knew where the kidnappers were based. Beyond that, it's every man for himself. You should have taken care of your own ship if you're so concerned about it."

"Excuse me," Naruto interrupted, "but if I heard correctly, these are the men who were kidnapping people from Gunsmith Island?"

"That's right," the black haired man replied. "Are you bounty hunters too? If so, you're too late."

"Actually, we're with the marines," Naruto replied.

"Good," he responded, shoving his prisoners at Naruto. "You can take them off my hands. Just make sure you let your superiors know that it was Uchiha Sasuke who caught them. I already have an account with the marines, so they'll see that I get my money."

Did he say Uchiha?

"That's right," Sasuke replied, seeing how his entire crew reacted to that name. "Uchiha Itachi is my brother."

That was a surprise. He wouldn't have suspected the brother of one of the Yonkou to be a bounty hunter. Maybe there was bad blood between them?

"How many of them escaped?" Tashigi asked the man. "And are there any left in the city?"

"Don't know, don't care," Sasuke replied already turning to leave. "This whole thing was a waste of my time. It was just a bunch of nobodies kidnapping people. Probably some black market slave ring."

Hopping onto the small sail boat, he untied it from the dock quickly pulling away from the shore.

"So, you currently don't have any way off this island, Mr ... ?" Nojiko asked the remaining bounty hunter.

"Shino," he supplied. "And that assessment is correct. But despite my companion's lack of teamwork, the results may have been for the best. Especially given that they took my ship."

"Why would it be a good thing they took your ship?" Kiba questioned.

"I have a way of tracking its location," he told them. "I believe there is more to this than we have yet discovered. Following them may lead us to answers. That is if you're willing to assist me in pursuing them."

"Our mission is to hunt these kidnappers down," Naruto replied. "If you can lead us to them, then I'm all for it."

"Good," Shino replied simply. "Are you ready to depart?"

"Almost," Naruto answered. "But first I think introductions are in order. I'm Naruto, the captain of our ship. This is Tashigi, Nojiko, Kiba, and Akamaru."

Shino nodded briefly to each of them as they were introduced, then began heading to the ship without further comment. He certainly wasn't the most warm and friendly of people. Following after him, Naruto reboarded the ship. Once on board, Shino stopped in his tracks, having caught site of Naruto's clones.

"Interesting," he said calmly before moving out of the way to let Naruto and his crew finish boarding.

Naruto was a bit disappointed by the subdued reaction to his power. He always got a bit of a kick out of the surprise people usually expressed. Shino, however, simply moved the starboard side of the ship and pointed out a direction.

"They're that way," he told them.

"You're sure?" Naruto asked.

"Very sure," Shino answered.

Naruto couldn't see anything that would indicate where he was getting that information from. A power of his perhaps?

"Are you a devil fruit user?" Nojiko asked him, apparently coming to a similar conclusion.

"I am," he answered, but didn't seem inclined to elaborate.

"Set course in that direction," Naruto ordered when it was clear he wasn't going to get anything further.

As they sailed, Shino proved to be frustratingly uncommunicative. He was open enough about what he knew regarding these kidnappers, which was very little. But he refused to answer any questions that he felt didn't have anything to do with their current task.

Naruto quickly ran out of patience with the bounty hunter, and went off to do a little light training. Nothing that would tire him out before they arrived. But he didn't have long to train as the kidnappers hadn't gone far. The place they'd fled to wasn't so much an island as a chunk of rock jutting out of the water like a giant stalagmite.

It didn't look more than 300 yards at its widest. There wasn't even a dock, just two small ships not much larger than their ship's rowboat tied to the shore. There appeared to be an entrance to a cave in the face of the rock. He had to assume that's where their targets were hiding.

"We've likely already been spotted," Naruto told them. "I don't want us stuck on the rowboat if they start shooting at us, so I'm taking the ship in close. Hopefully we won't hit any rocks."

But the steep slope of the rock face must have continued beyond the waters edge, as they were able to anchor less than ten feet from the shore without hitting anything. And during that time, no one had yet come out of the cave.

Moving to the bow of the ship, Naruto easily leaped across the water to land on the shore. Kiba and Akamaru followed suit, and Naruto was pleased to see even Shino had no trouble with the jump. Tashigi probably could have made it as well, but she caught her foot on the railing when jumping over leading her to take an unintended dive into the water.

"I'm okay," she told them after she'd surfaced.

Climbing to the shore Naruto could see for himself that her only ailment seemed to be her soaking wet condition. She wasn't even favoring the foot she caught on the railing, so he doubted she was just hiding an injury.

"I'm going to polish that wonderful piece of railing every day from now on," Kiba whispered to him, eying the dripping Tashigi appreciatively.

"I'd rather not get my gun wet," Nojiko called down to them. "Do you think you could help me down?"

"Just throw us your gun," Kiba suggested hopefully. "Then you can dive in safely."

"I can carry you across if you'd prefer," Naruto offered, trying to be a bit more helpful then his friend.

"Better than getting wet, I suppose," Nojiko answered.

In response, Naruto popped a clone into existence next to her on the deck. Lifting her over its shoulder, it jumped the distance, setting her down before vanishing.

"You're getting nothing from me on your birthday," Kiba muttered from next to him.

"I'll stay here and make sure no one escapes," Shino told him. "No offense, but recent experience leaves me disinclined to trust this task to another."

"That's fine," he agreed. "Do you want to stay with him, Nojiko? You're not in the marines, so there's no need for you to risk your life."

"I'll be fine," she answered holding up her gun as if to prove her point.

"Alright then, let's move in, but be careful," he ordered.

Entering the cave, they paused a moment to adjust to the dimmer light. They could see some illumination coming from further ahead, so at least they wouldn't have to deal with total darkness. Moving through the passage it soon widened into a larger cavern.

Three men stood at the far end from the entrance watching them come. In the center stood a man in glasses with gray hair pulled back into ponytail. The gray color didn't seem to be a result of age however, which Naruto would guess to be somewhere in his mid twenties.

To his left stood a very large man, in both height and girth. The sort of person who would generally be called fat by anyone who wasn't intimidated by his size. His orange hair was patterned in an odd style, with a almost a mohawk in the center and a small band of hair by each ear.

The final man stood to right of both of them. His hair was even lighter in color than the first man, but seemed to have just as little to do with age. His most unusual feature was the two red dots near the center of his face positioned slightly above his eyes.

Something about the first man in the glasses looked very familiar, and he searched through his memories trying to place him. With a flash, he had what he wanted.

"You're Kabuto," he declared. "Orochimaru's first officer."

"I'm flattered you recognize me," he replied. "But I'm afraid I can't let you leave alive. You understand how it is, this sort of thing getting out could jeopardize my captain's status as a member of the Shichibukai."

Naruto looked around the cave they were in. He wanted to make sure there were no surprises hiding in dark corners left by the few oil lamps scattered around. Doing so brought his attention to some very unpleasant features.

There was a corpse tied to a table with his chest sliced open. It looked like someone had been examining the organs inside. There was a second corpse floating face down in a tank of water. A third was chained to a wall with no visible markings, but looking no more alive than the other two.

His entire crew seemed to be unnerved by the sight. Nojiko was backing away from the nearest body. Tashigi was gripping her sword so tightly her hand was shaking. Kiba meanwhile looked to be putting a great deal of effort into not losing his lunch.

"I'd ordered them to bring more test subjects," Kabuto informed him. "When they came back alone, the only reasonable conclusion was that they were volunteering their own bodies."

"You did this to your own men?" Tashigi cried out in a fury.

"This is the sickest, most depraved thing I've ever seen," Kiba added. "You're a monster."

"As much as I'd love to debate ethics with you, I really am quite busy," Kabuto replied. "Kimimaro, Jiroubou, finish them."

* * *

The slimmer of Kabuto's two subordinates was charging directly for Nojiko. She held her gun pointed right at his chest but hesitated. She'd never actually shot a person before and now she found herself plagued with indecision. But soon the man was only a few feet from her, and in a panic she fired from point blank range.

Her assaulter stopped in his tracks, a spot of red forming on his shirt. Despite knowing there was no way he'd survive that, she scurried off to another corner of the cave, still training her gun on him. To her shock he turned calmly to face her. But even more astonishing, the bullet seemed to push itself back out the hole in his shirt, falling to the ground.

The man began moving her way again, and this time she didn't hesitate at all as she emptied her entire clip into him. She hit both legs, both arms, and then fired the rest into his chest. But the man didn't so much as slow.

She was beginning to panic when Tashigi jumped in front of the charging man, slashing it him. He blocked with his arm, allowing the blade to cut into it. But he just stood there calmly as if having a sword stuck in his arm was no big deal.

"So are you Kimimaro or Jiroubou?" Tashigi asked him.

"Kimimaro," he answered. "And there is no point to resisting. Your fight with me is hopeless enough, to say nothing of your chances should Kabuto come to my aid after dispatching your friends."

"Might I remind you that you're the one who's already injured?" Tashigi said smugly.

"This?" he asked, pulling his arm free. "This is nothing to me."

Almost as soon as he'd pulled it loose, the flesh pressed itself back together, leaving not so much as a scar to indicate the wound he'd just received.

"My bones are harder than steel and my flesh will repair itself in moments," Kimimaro declared.

"Then how about this?" Tashigi asked, slicing her sword across his abdomen.

But it seemed to deflect off of something, leaving only a shallow cut which quickly healed as fully as the first one.

"I have extended my bones to protect all vital organs," he said calmly. "Your efforts are wasted."

Not willing to give up so quickly, Nojiko took aim at one of his eyes and fired. However, his arm had moved up in sync with her gun's aim and blocked the bullet's path. But she smirked anyway, it looked like her theory was right.

"You blocked that," she pointed out. "So I'd wager your bones can't protect your eyes."

"I guess you're not as invulnerable as you'd want us to believe," Tashigi chimed in.

"Perhaps so," he admitted. "But while I have only to guard my eyes, you still have to protect your entire bodies."

As if to emphasize his words, he threw a punch at Tashigi. She blocked the incoming knuckles with the blade of her sword, but was almost skewered when three sharp white spikes burst out of his fist. But Tashigi slipped to the side of attack and Kimimaro withdrew the spikes back into his body.

A little more cautiously now, Tashigi jumped back at her opponent. It proved to be a dangerous game, as Kimimaro would simply ignore any attack that wasn't aimed for his face, using the opportunity to go on the offensive instead. Tashigi sported several tears in her still wet clothes as proof how difficult avoiding those counterattacks was.

Meanwhile Nojiko was growing frustrated as she'd been trying to get a sight on his eyes. But even while fighting Tashigi, he always had the presence of mind to keep an arm up guarding them from her. And her attempts to move to where she'd have an angle she could reach them proved useless as he would simply adjust appropriately.

It didn't look like the two of them could handle Kimimaro. They needed help. But if she could finish off one of their other opponents, that should free someone to come to their aid. She doubted they were all bullet proof. Catching site of the fat one fighting Kiba and Akamaru, she moved her aim in his direction. But Kimimaro remained a step ahead of her, quickly placing his own body in the way.

"Your opponent is me," he declared.

Nojiko couldn't believe just how dangerous this man was. He continued to block her every effort to get a shot off at any opponent other than himself. And he was pretty much fighting one handed to keep a constant guard on his eyes. And despite having to keep close track of his allies' and enemies' movements, he was still keeping the upper hand against Tashigi.

Tashigi seemed as much at a loss for what to do as she was. But Nojiko certainly wasn't expecting her to turn her back to their opponent and run directly at Nojiko, coming to a stop next to her. For his part, Kimimaro stood there watching her impassively.

"If you're ready to surrender, I'll make your deaths as painless as possible," he offered. "You'll find it much less pleasant if you end up as Kabuto's next test subjects."

"We can't beat him," Nojiko said. "But you can still help someone else. He can't block your path and my bullets at the same time."

"If I leave you behind he'll kill you," Tashigi countered forcefully. "Now shut up and listen, I have a plan that should let us both live."

Surprised by Tashigi's resolution, she did as she was told.

"You see this spot right here?" she asked touching the back of her head to indicate where she meant.

"Yes," Nojiko answered.

"Good," Tashigi replied. "I need you to stay right where you are and aim very carefully for that exact spot. While you're doing that, watch my feet. As soon as I take my seventh step, aim right where the spot I showed you is at the exact moment my foot touches the ground. Then wait half a second and fire."

"I can do that," Nojiko said, hope blossoming once again that they might actually win.

"Good," Tashigi replied. "But it's very important that your aim is exactly on that spot."

"That won't be a problem," Nojiko assured her.

"Good, then start counting now," she said taking off charging at Kimimaro.

"Useless," Kimimaro told them as Tashigi ran toward him. "Your plan is transparent."

She heard a cry of pain off somewhere else, but ignored it, making sure not to loose count of the steps. But sure enough, when Tashigi jumped out of the way, his arm was already blocking his eyes. But Nojiko didn't fire.

That had only been six steps, hadn't it? Following Tashigi's flight through the air, she took aim just in time for Tashigi to touch down. As Tashigi instantly ducked down, she began to hope this might work. Had it been a trick to keep Kimimaro from blocking a shot at one of his allies?

But by the time she'd fired she'd realized there wasn't anyone behind Tashigi. What could she be hoping to accomplish? The only thing in the path of her bullet was Tashigi's sword. Wait, she couldn't be trying to do that could she?

A metallic clang a moment later indicated that the bullet had indeed hit Tashigi's sword. Looking back at Kimimaro, she saw his arm fall, giving Nojiko her first look at his eyes since the beginning of the fight.

Or it might be more accurate to say his eye. The other was little more than a bloody mess. Tashigi had actually manage to redirect the bullet into his eye with her sword. She was either far more skilled or far more lucky than Nojiko had realized. Either way, she still stood transfixed as Kimimaro fell lifeless to the ground.

They'd won. They'd actually won.

* * *

As usual it looked like Naruto was going to help himself to the leader. Oh well, the big one looked more fun to mess with anyway.

"Hey fatso," he called out to the man. "If you can manage to make it over here without having a heart attack, how about we have a little match. Although I guess we can hardly call it a little match if you're participating."

"Don't call me fatso," the man replied angrily. "My name Jiroubou."

"Whatever you say, fatso," Kiba answered with a smirk.

Now that he'd succeeded in getting his attention, Kiba and Akamaru spread out to either side of Jiroubou as he approached. Kiba had to wonder if he had some giant blood in him. He looked to be over seven feet tall. But he didn't let that worry him, and with years of practice, he and his partner fluidly moved into position and began their attack without so much as a signal needed.

Akamaru began his Tsuuga, barreling toward the giant of a man, while Kiba ran from the opposite direction. Apparently deciding Akamaru was the larger threat, Jiroubou turned to face the dog. But that suited Kiba just fine, he was leaving his back wide open.

Then, almost in time with Kiba's own fist, Jiroubou swung a right hook at Akamaru which caught the dog in his side right before he would have hit the large man. The force of it knocked his partner right out of his spin and sent him careening into the rock wall of the cave, actually cracking it.

Meanwhile Kiba's own fist impacted full force with his opponent's back. But it seemed to have no more effect than if he was giving a message.

"Akamaru," Kiba cried out in concern.

But he saw his longtime companion get up, if a little shakily. Getting their distance again, the two warily began circling their opponent, giving Akamaru more time to recover.

"Was that Tekkai or something?" Kiba asked.

"Don't make me laugh," Jiroubou mocked. "Your punch is just too weak."

The man gave no indication of making a move of his own, so eventually Kiba moved in a bit closer to his target, then nodded for Akamaru to give it another try. As he attempted another Tsuuga, Kiba timed it carefully, and right before Jiroubou would need to punch, he latched on to the man's arm.

Unfortunately for Kiba, even his whole body weight didn't seem to slow the man's fist, as for a second time it slammed into Akamaru, sending him right back into the same cracked spot in the wall he'd hit before, doing further damage to it. Then grabbing the still stunned Kiba with his left hand, he yanked him free and threw him right after Akamaru.

The dog gave a startled yelp as they collided rather painfully. But they both made their way unsteadily to their feet. Kiba was pained to see that Akamaru was now favoring his front right leg as they spread out and again began to circle the man. This was hard enough before the injury. They were going to need a different strategy.

Approaching very cautiously, Akamaru now attempted a sort of hit and run tactic. Not that there was any actual hitting yet, he darting just in and out of range of their opponent trying to provoke a careless punch. But Jiroubou wasn't biting, which prevented Akamaru's more literal biting that would be the followup move to any such attempt.

Trying something else, Kiba leaped up on the man's back wrapping his arm around the large neck in an attempt to choke him. But Jiroubou proved more flexible than Kiba had hoped, and he had to quickly jump back down to avoid being grabbed. Backing up he almost slipped on something.

Looking down he saw the offending object was a dagger. What was a dagger doing lying on the floor? And one that seemed to be covered in fresh blood too. Still, this could be just what he needed. Jiroubou's back was still to him, so he hadn't seen him pick up the dagger.

Signaling Akamaru again, his partner prepared for one more attempt with the Tsuuga. With his attention fully on the incoming dog, Jiroubou was completely caught off guard when Kiba buried the dagger up to its hilt in his back.

He cried out loudly in pain, the shock also preventing him from countering Akamaru's Tsuuga. Kiba jumped quickly out of the way as Akamaru slammed into Jiroubou's stomach giving him his own turn to be sent forcefully into the cave's wall.

After his back slammed into the cave, gravity took over and pulled the orange haired man back to ground, where he landed flat on his impressively large stomach. Kiba approached him cautiously but a quick check for a pulse found him dead.

The dagger had still been in his back when it had collided with the wall, and the force of the impact had pushed the point even further into his body. Far enough to reach his heart, it seemed. Gingerly pulling the dagger out, Kiba decided to hang on to it. The weapon might just come in handy again.

* * *

Naruto went straight for Kabuto. The first officer of a member of the Shichibukai was unlikely to be a pushover, so he wouldn't be much of a captain if he didn't confront this threat himself. Still, as he'd pointed out, this was probably a dangerous man. Some caution was called for.

Summoning four clones around his opponent, he hung back deciding to use them to gauge Kabuto's abilities.

"That's a fascinating power," Kabuto told him. "Tell me, do they function like normal bodies? I would love to have a self replicating test subject. It would be a huge boon for my research."

But Naruto wasn't here for conversation. He had all four clones attack simultaneously. For his part, Kabuto pulled out a dagger, and attempted to defend himself. As the battle began Naruto realized that Kabuto really was very good. He had yet to be overwhelmed even by four of Naruto's clones.

But he was nothing Naruto couldn't handle. He was so busy defending himself he hardly got a chance to attack and had yet to even take out a clone. Meanwhile, Kabuto had even taken a few glancing blows. Deciding he'd seen enough, Naruto moved in himself to finish this.

As he neared his target, a dangerous glint in the man's eyes lit off warning light's in Naruto's head. Trusting his instincts, Naruto began to change course almost before he saw Kabuto charging him. Leaning back, to avoid the incoming swipe with the dagger, he didn't quite get away unscathed as it left a cut beneath his eye.

Quickly backpedaling Naruto realized how close he had come to loosing an eye.

"Hmm ... it seems you're a bit faster than your copies," Kabuto said with an wicked grin. "I'll keep that in mind for the next time."

As if it hadn't already been clear he'd been holding back as a trap, Kabuto began making quick work of Naruto's clones. He was fast, so very fast. Naruto couldn't hope to match him in speed, he wasn't even close. Naruto found himself afflicted by something he'd never felt in combat before. Fear.

It was all he could do to keep replacing the clones that were being destroyed to prevent Kabuto from reaching him. He was almost in a panic now. Nothing his clones tried worked, and even though they weren't quite as fast as he was, he knew the difference wouldn't be enough.

Every scenario he ran in his mind ended the same way. Even with his clones for interference Kabuto's attack would hit first should he fight directly. Especially as the man would go straight for the real Naruto.

But maybe he could use Tekkai. He was nearly certain he could withstand a blow from the dagger, which would then give him the opportunity to counterattack. He was about to go with that plan a thought stopped him.

No, that would almost certainly fail too. He couldn't move when using his Tekkai, and Kabuto was just too fast. He'd be able to dance back after the strike before Naruto would get in a counter. But there was a solution, he'd just been letting his fear blind him to some of the options.

Kabuto's strike would hit first, he was certain of the fact. But that was the key to everything. With all the clones he'd lost fighting Kabuto, he was getting a lot of information on his opponent's fighting style. So he had a pretty good idea of how this exchange he had planned would go. At least he hoped so.

Charging Kabuto personally, he saw the man accept his challenge and head straight for him. He used his clones the best he could to slow and distract the man. Meanwhile he twisted his own body, which caused the downward diagonal slash that was aimed at his neck to miss by a couple of inches, burying itself in Naruto's shoulder left shoulder instead.

But the whole time Kabuto had been swinging, Naruto's own right arm hand had already been in motion. Only a moment after blade cut into his shoulder, Naruto sent a Shigan into and right through Kabuto's wrist. Kabuto dropped the dagger involuntarily and Naruto quickly kicked it away.

Kabuto leaped back and was already ripping his shirt with his left hand and wrapping it around the wound to staunch the bleeding. Naruto was having one his clones rip his own shirt to do the same to his wound. But Naruto was very pleased with the success of his plan.

Kabuto's strike had hit first, as he'd known it would. But that hadn't meant it would be the only attack to land. And Kabuto had lost his weapon hand and his weapon. Naruto meanwhile had a shoulder wound on the side of his off hand.

And he could still move that hand ... a little he amended to himself with a wince as he tried to do just that. Regardless, he considered his injury the lesser of the two, and his clones were completely unaffected by it. In this war of attrition, he was taking a strong lead.

But his opponent was far from helpless he realized. As Kabuto had just pulled a scalpel from somewhere and used it to dispatch one of his clones that had been attempting to take advantage of his wounded state.

A loud cry of pain echoed through the room, and Naruto glanced at its source just in time to see the large orange haired pirate sent hurtling into a wall by Akamaru.

"Jiroubou you worthless fool," Kabuto muttered, then turned away from Naruto to run to where his final companion was fighting, apparently intent on joining forces.

But he stopped in his tracks as a moment later Kimimaro fell to the ground, bleeding from his eye.

"Kimimaro too!" Kabuto cried out, looking genuinely shocked that his companion had fallen.

The defeat of both his comrades seemed enough to convince the man that discretion was the better part of valor, seeing as he turned and ran for the entrance. And unfortunately for Naruto, their fighting had left Kabuto closer to it than him.

He gave chase to the man as they ran through the cave and back out into the open. Shino saw Kabuto running toward the ships and moved to block his path. But he doubted Shino realized just how fast and dangerous Kabuto was.

"Look out," he yelled in warning.

But his cry was too late, as Kabuto had already darted right at the young bounty hunter, sending his scalpel straight for Shino's chest. However, instead of piercing clothing and skin, a hole opened up in the center of his chest allowing the hand to pass right through.

The hole then closed itself back up around Kabuto's arm. But rather than his Shino's body, it looked to be a swarm of dark brown bugs of some sort, that were now crawling further up his arm.

"Logia!" Kabuto snarled, rushing the last couple of feet and diving into the ocean, forcing Shino to release him as the bugs flew back to his body and joined back into their original form.

Kabuto was already lifting a leg over the edge of one of the small boats to board it. But Nojiko had just made it outside, and a quick shot from her gun pierced his thigh and sent him falling back into the water. Briefly treading water, he looked around where Naruto's entire crew had now gathered.

"I surrender," he declared firmly.

"Very well," Naruto agreed. "Come back on shore and don't make any sudden moves. Everyone else back away from him."

He did as he was directed, blood, mixing with water dripping from him as he stood there.

"Your left arm is no doubt feeling numb by now," Shino told Kabuto. "The insects in my logia form possess a weak toxin that in large enough doses causes temporary paralysis. If you truly wish to surrender, you will allow me to apply it to the rest of your body."

"Fine," Kabuto agreed.

Converting his whole body into a swarm of bugs, they flew over and completely covered Kabuto's. A moment later, they reformed into a humanoid form as Shino grabbed the now paralyzed pirate and lowered his body to the ground.

"Creepy," Nojiko muttered.

"Thanks for your help," Naruto told Shino sincerely. "He might have gotten away without it."

"I was merely performing the task I agreed to do," Shino replied.

"Well whatever the reason I'm just ... whoa," he said, his sentence cut off as a wave of dizziness him.

"You're bleeding!" Nojiko said in surprise, his reaction to the blood loss having drawn her attention to his wounds.

"It's nothing serious," Naruto insisted. "As soon as we report this back to the base, I'll have it looked at."

"The call can wait a few minutes," Tashigi berated him. "It's more urgent that you get that looked at."

"Yeah," Nojiko agreed. "If you're having trouble standing you're in no condition to be making reports."

"Fine," Naruto agreed, "I'll go get the first aid kit."

Moving toward the ship he was cut off by Akamaru, who stood in his path growling at him.

"Akamaru wants you to stay here and rest while we get the first aid kit," Kiba translated.

"Yeah, I kind of got the message myself," Naruto muttered, but complied and sat down on a somewhat flat rock that was nearby.

"You know who that is, right?" Shino asked him.

"Yeah, Orochimaru's first officer," he answered.

"From what I know of the man," Shino continued, "I find it doubtful that Kabuto has simply gone rogue."

"I agree," Naruto answered. "This isn't over yet."

* * *

**Naruto's Clone Adventures**

Naruto and Ino soon reached her ship, with Naruto dragging one of the unconscious men he'd fought behind him. It was a decent sized vessel that looked to be about twice as large as his own ship. Boarding he found the place bustling with activity as men were busy loading and unloading cargo.

Oddly enough, there was one black haired young man lying flat on his back in the middle of the deck and looking up at the sky. Ino spotted him as well and marched right over to him looking none-too-happy.

"Shikamaru," she shouted. "Where were you this morning? I couldn't find you anywhere."

"I was sleeping," he answered, not even getting up from where he was lying.

"I checked your room," she insisted. "You weren't there."

"Of course not," he replied lazily. "You would have found me if I slept in my room."

"My father doesn't pay you to sleep," she berated him. "For your information, I was almost kidnapped."

"He doesn't pay me to be your bodyguard either," Shikamaru answered, finally at least sitting up. "You have bodyguards. Why didn't you take them?"

"I can't do business properly with those two over-muscled idiots following me around scaring off potential clients."

"Anyway, I'm going to get going," Naruto interrupted.

"Hold on just a minute," Ino told him. "There's one thing I want to check first."

Walking over to the unconscious thug, she began to rather forcefully slap his face in an attempt to rouse him to consciousness. A method that quickly proved successful.

"Okay, you neanderthal, tell me where I can find this Gato," she ordered.

"You won't need to look for him," the man answered. "When he hears about this, he'll come here himself. If I were you I'd leave while I still had the chance."

"That makes it simple," she answered. "For your information, Shikamaru, Gato is the local crime boss or something. It looks like we're going to have to take him out if we want to do business around here."

"Excuse me?" Shikamaru asked. "How do you propose we do that."

"That's where Naruto here comes in," Ino answered.

"Oh, no," Naruto said. "I agreed to escort you to your ship, nothing more."

"Well, I'm not going to let Gato chase me out," Ino declared. "So you can either help me, or leave me and all my employees to die."

"Look, I'd like to help you," Naruto responded. "But I'm not even the real Naruto. I'm just a copy made by his devil fruit power. One good hit and I vanish. The real Naruto should have already left this island."

"Then you'll just have to make sure you don't get hit," Ino answered. "You looked fast enough to do it."

Naruto just stared at her incredulously. Was she really going to risk her entire crew's life over this?

"Just go along with her," Shikamaru suggested. "She'll get what she wants in the end anyway, and if you give in early you may be able to get away without a headache."

"Fine," Naruto agreed.

"Great," she told him cheerfully. "Now if you two would keep an eye out for Gato, I have a business to run."

With that she ran off leaving Naruto and Shikamaru alone.

"She's such a troublesome woman," Shikamaru muttered.

Naruto had to agree.

* * *

**AN**

I forgot to mention this in my last note, but as you may have already guessed I'm going to be writing a little side story on the adventures of Naruto's clone at the end of each chapter as a sort of a bonus. Everything that happened is considered canon as far as my story is concerned.

But while it does serve as an introduction to Ino and Shikamaru, who will play a role in the main plot later, the details of what happens in the side story aren't really important.

On this chapter, I was personally more pleased with the fight scenes than any I've ever written. Not that I'd claim they're all that amazing, but I consider it a personal triumph nonetheless. But it's the next few chapters I'm really excited about. I'm not at all confident I'll be able to make the fights as good as this chapter's but this is a part of the plot I've really been looking forward to writing.

In addition to having some major events of their own, they'll be chock full of hints of things I have planned out for several future story arcs. Extending out even beyond the current end of the manga. I'll also include a red herring or two to throw you off track with your guessing.

Finally, I'd like to thank everyone for reviewing. Chapter 7 broke chapter 5's record as my most reviewed chapter of any story I've written. Still not enough to really brag about I know, but I'm easily pleased. Hope to hear more, and thanks for reading.


	9. Chapter 9

"What do you mean he's unavailable?" Naruto said angrily into the den den mushi.

But immediately he tried to calm himself, Kakashi's availability wasn't the fault of the man on the other end.

"Sorry," he apologized. "But is there someone else high ranking I can talk to? I have some important information regarding our mission."

"That won't be necessary," he answered. "The Rear Admiral said he would call you back shortly."

"I certainly hope so," Naruto replied in annoyance, setting the receiver down.

As soon as Naruto had been bandaged up, he'd wasted no time in heading into the dining area where they kept the den den mushi in an attempt to make his report. But it turned out there wasn't much point in rushing.

Currently, only Shino was in the room with him, as everyone else was out on the deck preparing for departure.

"So, now that you have your ship back, I guess we'll be parting ways," Naruto told him.

"Not necessarily," Shino replied. "If you'll permit me, I'd like to continue our cooperation until we've ascertained if Orochimaru is involved and fully resolved this matter."

"You do know there's no bounty on any of the Shichibukai don't you?" Naruto asked.

"Of course," he answered. "I can see why you might suspect that would be an issue given my occupation. However, my family already has a sizable pool of assets, so I am not doing this for the monetary compensation."

"If you want to join us, I'd be happy to have you," Naruto told him. "You've certainly proven yourself capable. We'll make sure to pull your boat on board before we leave."

"That won't be necessary," Shino answered. "I've already removed everything of importance to me. And I don't believe the value of having a second ship of its size outweighs the cost of the space it would occupy."

"Well, if you're going to change your mind, do it quickly," he warned. "I'm about to go set course back to G-5."

"You'll do nothing of the sort," Nojiko said firmly, walking in from the galley and setting two large cups of water in front of him. "You're going to rest and drink lots of fluids. Your dinner will be ready shortly."

"I was just going to take the helm," Naruto protested. "There's nothing strenuous about that."

"We can handle it just fine," she insisted. "And if you keep giving us trouble, we _will_ lock you in your room under guard."

"I get it already," Naruto told her. "See, I'm resting."

Taking up one of the glasses of water he began to guzzle it down as proof he was cooperating. But he was going to go mad if this kept up for long.

* * *

"Have you seen Naruto?" Nojiko asked Tashigi, after entering the dining room to look for him.

"He just went to his quarters to get some rest," she replied. "I think he finally realized we weren't about to let him do anything."

"Did you follow him to make sure he actually went there?" Nojiko queried.

"Yes," she confirmed. "And Akamaru is guarding the door right now."

"Good," Nojiko declared, taking a seat next to Tashigi at the table. "Who would have guessed he'd make such a bad patient?"

"I never thought I'd say this about anyone," she responded, "but his work ethic may be a little too strong."

"Anyway, I'm glad I caught you here," Nojiko told her. "I wanted to thank you for not leaving me to die by in that cave. Especially since I know you don't exactly approve of my being on the ship."

"About that, I may have overreacted a bit," Tashigi admitted. "And I doubt either of us would have come out of that fight alive without the other. So if you'll forgive my behavior I'll try to overlook your ties with your sister."

"Great," Nojiko replied cheerfully. "Now with that matter settled, there's actually something I've been wanting to ask you, if you don't mind."

"Go ahead," she encouraged.

"Well, you and Naruto have been spending a lot of time every night training together," she pointed out. "Is there anything going on between you?"

"What? No!" Tashigi blurted out. "It .. it's just training. What would give you that idea?"

Nojiko believed her about nothing going on. However, based on her reaction, she would wager the other girl wouldn't mind if there was.

"Nothing in particular," she answered. "I was just curious."

"Wait, are you asking because you're interested in him?" Tashigi questioned.

"He's a nice, good looking guy," she answered. "I'll admit I've considered seeing if something might work out. I didn't want to step on any toes, but since nothing is going on between you …"

"Isn't it too soon to think of something like that?" Tashigi asked, failing to successfully hide her nervousness. "You barely even know him."

Yeah, that all but settled it. Tashigi was getting a little attached to their captain, even if she hadn't realized it herself yet. And Nojiko couldn't resist urge to tease the swordswoman a little more.

"Maybe you're right," Nojiko told her. "But I did join his crew before you, so I guess that means I get the first shot at him once we've had a little more time to get to know him?"

"Not that I'm worried about that or anything," Tashigi said in tone that didn't match her words, "but I did meet Naruto back in the academy. So technically I've known him much longer than you have."

"Actually, I've known Naruto longer than either of you," Kiba stated, drawing attention to the fact that he was standing in the doorway to the dining room.

"How long of you been there?" Tashigi demanded of him.

"Just long enough to hear you say you've known Naruto longer than Nojiko has," Kiba answered. "So I pointed out that I've known him longer than you."

"He's right though," Nojiko said with an evil grin. "It's only fair that we give him the first chance."

Tashigi briefly looked shocked at the suggestion, and Nojiko wondered for a moment if the other girl was actually taking her seriously. But she quickly cracked a smile, and covering her mouth failed to fully suppress a giggle.

Looking at her reaction, Nojiko couldn't help but chuckle herself. And almost feeding off of each other, soon the both of them we in full blown laughter.

"What so funny?" Kiba asked, unhappy at being the butt of a joke he wasn't even party to. "What were you even talking about?"

But neither of them gave him an answer, so he simply turned and stormed off, which set off another round of laughter. Just yesterday, she wouldn't have thought it possible she'd ever be getting along this well with Tashigi.

But it certainly put her in a good mood to have patched things up. She found herself genuinely excited about what adventure they would have next.

* * *

Having gone to bed so early the previous night, Naruto found himself awake before it was even light out. Moving his left arm experimentally, he found it much less painful than the day before. Walking over the mirror in his cabin, he removed the bandages to get a look at the wound.

It looked be healing up nicely. He'd try to avoid doing too much with it to be safe, but he didn't think there was much risk of tearing it open again. And since he was up so early, he could probably get some training in before anyone else woke up to protest that course of action..

After the fight with Kabuto, Naruto had come to the decision that from now on his training would include efforts to improve his speed. He'd always considered speed to be one of his strongest assets, and to be outclassed so badly in that area was a bitter pill to swallow. It wasn't an experience he hoped to repeat.

Actually, he should probably devote a little time each day to each of his already known skills. Improving his Tekkai and Shigan would come in handy. But he felt it was time to start focusing on a new ability as well. And it would probably be wisest to make that ability Geppou.

It could prove to be a pain to master, given how little time he'd spent working on the ability compared to some of the other Rokushiki. When he was younger, it just hadn't seemed as cool to him as some of the flashier powers.

But now that he was a devil fruit user, he was one fall in the ocean away from helplessness. And being able to jump off of air would go a long way to reducing that danger. As for his clones, they would keep working on Soru, for now. Although there was one thing he wanted to try first.

Plans made, he opened his door and found Akamaru sleeping outside. They really had put a guard on his room. Quietly as he could, Naruto slipped out the door and shut it behind him, then crept up the stairs.

Reaching the deck, he saw that he was right about being the only one up. Rather than explain his plan to his clones, Naruto dismissed three of them, leaving only the one at the helm, and then resummoned them next to him.

Two of them he immediately set off to continue working on Soru, but the third he had just stand there. For his plan, he started off by doing little more than tapping his clone's chest with his fist.

Seeing it didn't vanish, he increased the force slightly, and continued to do so until he found the amount of force necessary to destroy it. And the force required was so pitifully little that the blow had hardly qualified as a punch.

Anyway, summoning it once again, this time he had it attempt to do Tekkai. Starting off with the amount of force he'd just used to destroy it, he found the clone capable of withstanding it.

It also lasted through a series of increasingly strong punches finally vanishing at a little more than twice the strength it took to destroy it without its Tekkai. It still wasn't all that much damage it could absorb, but this was a great proof of concept.

Naruto had tested his clones before in a much less methodical manner, and just assumed they couldn't use Tekkai. But then he'd discovered that, while they were capable of using Soru, his clones weren't as proficient at it.

So it occurred to him that the same might be true of the defensive ability. And now he'd proved himself right. They were just so bad at it because it was a harder ability than Soru to use.

But if he could master it with them, it would go a long way to helping with their greatest weakness. Setting the clone to meditating, Naruto joined his other two clones in speed training.

He was pleased to see how much progress they'd been making. When he'd first started them on this training, they could probably do about 75 percent of his top speed. Now he'd wager they were up over 90 percent. He should be able to start them on Tekkai training pretty soon.

He continued his training for a couple of hours, seeing the sun start to rise on horizon. He was interrupted, however, by a voice behind him.

"What do you think you're doing?" Tashigi asked harshly.

"Just getting a little training in," he answered. "Don't worry, my wound is doing much better today."

"I'll be judge of that," Tashigi replied.

Removing his shirt, Naruto showed her the still healing cut, which remained unbandaged from when he'd examined it himself earlier. Tashigi looked it over critically, but didn't immediately protest further.

"I suppose it is healing up faster than expected," she admitted. "But I still want you to take it easy today."

"I will," he promised. "Anyway, aren't you up pretty early today?"

"Yeah," she replied, "with you asleep I didn't have anyone to train with, so I turned in a couple of hours before I usually would."

"You could have used my clones," he pointed out.

"Well, I was worried that if I happened to take one out it might wake you," she answered.

"Actually, I'm not sure whether it would or not," Naruto admitted.

"Speaking of your clones," Tashigi began, "I noticed they don't have the cut under the eye that you do. Is that because you summoned them before you were wounded?"

"No, I've resummoned them all since," Naruto answered. "But my clones can't even be injured without being destroyed. So it makes sense they wouldn't have my wounds."

"Also, your hair is longer," she added.

"I suppose I probably could use a haircut," he admitted. "I just haven't had the time lately."

"No, I mean it's longer than your clones'," she clarified.

Looking for himself, he realized that she was right. He had notice himself that his hair was looking a little long recently, but his clones' hair appeared as if recently cut.

"I guess that's because I think of myself that way or something?" Naruto speculated.

"If it's just what you're thinking, could you make other changes?" she asked.

He wasn't sure whether or not to hope she was on to something. On the one hand, it'd be great if he could. On the other hand, he'd feel quite foolish if he could, and the only reason he hadn't discovered that fact was that he'd never tried before.

Still, he might as well test it out. To start off with, he was going to see if he could make a clone of Kiba. Dismissing on his clones, he pictured the young man in his mind. Then he focused on the image, willing a clone to appear that looked just like Kiba. To his shock it actually worked. There before him stood a perfect doppelganger of Kiba.

"How does my voice sound?" the clone asked making it clear the voice matched as well.

"That's amazing," Tashigi stated, walking around the clone looking for any flaw.

"I wonder what else I can make," Naruto muttered to himself.

Actually, before that, he should try to change the clone he already had out. He willed it to return to his own form, but try as he might, nothing happened. It seemed he couldn't change them once they were already out.

Anyway back to other testing, he dismissed the clone and tried to make a chair appear, but nothing happened. Nor did anything occur when he attempted to make a clone of Akamaru or a giant. Actually the giant not working was probably a good thing as he wouldn't exactly have fit very well on the boat.

"Looks like it only works for people, and nothing too big," he stated, realizing Tashigi wouldn't be able to tell what his failures had been.

"Still, think of all the new possibilities this opens up for your power," she declared.

"Yeah, I'm going to experiment a bit more," he told her. "But I can see a lot of use for this."

* * *

"I can't believe Kakashi is still unavailable," Naruto complained, resisting the urge to slam the receiver down, as the den den mushi didn't deserve that.

"Well, you've made your call, can we eat now?" Kiba asked.

"Sure," he answered, taking a seat at the table where the rest of his human crew members were already seated.

But he was surprised by just how much food was waiting there. There was a large roast, and numerous sides of vegetables, soup, and salad.

"This is quite a feast," Naruto declared.

"That's because this is supposed to be in honor of Shino joining our crew," Nojiko answered. "I tried to tell you about it, but you were too distracted with your newfound power to pay attention."

"Sorry about that," Naruto told her sheepishly.

Although to be honest, it probably kept him out of trouble, seeing as he was too busy experimenting to do any physical training. And he'd learned quite a bit about the his ability's limitations. He was right about it only being people, but it wasn't just humans, fishmen worked as well.

As for size, Jiroubou was about the largest he could manage, while on the small side, he couldn't go below a child of eight or so. Also, he could make just about anything he wanted for clothing, decoration, or objects to hold.

However, anything that got more than a couple of inches from the clone's body would waver and vanish. So it wouldn't do much good if he wanted to quit the marines and start a counterfeiting operation.

"I've already told you, this wasn't necessary," Shino protested. "I'm only planning to stay until we've determined if Orochimaru had anything to do with the kidnappings and handled the situation appropriately."

"Even if you're not going to be here long, we'd still like a chance to get to know you," Nojiko argued.

"I'm afraid there really isn't much to know," Shino insisted.

"Well, do you have any family?" she asked.

"I do," Shino replied.

"Do you want to elaborate?" she prodded.

"Not really," Shino answered unhelpfully.

"Actually, there is something I was curious about," Naruto interjected. "You said your devil fruit was a logia type, but logia powers are supposed to be elemental in nature. You turn into bugs, so shouldn't it be paramecia?"

"The classifications of powers are merely arbitrary categories created for similar powers," Shino answered. "The rules and limitations of my power closely mirror those generally attributed to logia. Therefore, I consider it more accurate to say that the elemental requirement for a logia classification is inaccurate than it is to say my power is not logia."

Apparently they'd found something he was actually interested in talking about.

"But if it's just a made up classification, why does it even matter?" Nojiko asked.

"Because unquestioningly sticking to existing definitions could cause us to miss potential insights," Shino replied. "For example, the insects I convert my body into can be killed, but doing so causes no corresponding injury to my body."

"So if you turned your hand to bugs, and someone swatted them all, you could still reform your hand?" Kiba asked curiously.

"Correct," Shino confirmed. "However, the experience is highly unpleasant, and leaves me somewhat exhausted. Also, if enough of them perish at once the shock has been known to force me back into my human form."

"But what insight does this provide?" Naruto asked.

"Seeing as my power behaves very similar to other logia powers," he responded, "it's likely they would have a similar reaction. For example, if Aokiji turned himself to ice, and we were to melt it, it might leave him in a weakened state."

"But it's not like we'd ever fight a marine admiral," Tashigi interjected.

"It was merely an example," Shino clarified. "But pirates have been known to obtain logia powers as well."

"I still say it's paramecia," Kiba insisted. "You can't change the meaning of the word just because you want to."

It might just be his imagination, but Naruto could almost swear he heard a small buzzing coming from Shino now.

"Paramecia isn't even a real category," Shino replied. "It's merely a term for any power that doesn't conform to what is considered zoan or logia. In reality, there are probably many distinct classifications within the paramecia category if it were properly reexamined."

"Admit it," Kiba told him, "you just want your power to be logia because logia powers are so highly respected."

This time Naruto was certain he heard buzzing, and looking at Shino, he actually saw several bugs crawling over Shino's clothes and skin. Perhaps he'd unconsciously converted part of his body? His expression and body language remaining completely stoic, but Naruto suspected Kiba had struck a nerve.

"I think maybe we should change the subject," Nojiko declared. "So Shino, is there anything you'd like to know about us?"

"Not particularly," he replied.

And it looked like the guest of honor was back to being uncommunicative. Anyway, logia or paramecia, it was a really useful power. Naruto would be glad to have him on board for as long as he was willing to stay.

* * *

Pulling into the dock of the G-5 base, Naruto was hoping being here in person would let him finally get in contact with the rear admiral. Naruto realized he owed the man a great deal for being so lenient on him, but it wasn't fitting for an officer of his rank to be so irresponsible.

He was just about to hop off the ship and see if he could locate Kakashi when he heard the den den mushi go off.

"You have to be kidding me," Naruto complained.

Going into the dining room, he lifted the receiver and called out a greeting.

"Ah, Naruto," the den den mushi said in Kakashi's voice. "You had something to report?"

"Yes," he answered. "But I admit that I was expecting to report it much sooner."

"Yeah about that," Kakashi replied, "I've been trying to call you back, but it seems our den den mushi was having problems. I think it must have been ill."

"Odd," Naruto answered suspiciously, "we called back twice after our first call and it seemed to work fine."

"Then I guess it was only having trouble sending," Kakashi suggested. "But at least it's working now. So what was the result of your mission?"

Naruto considered it far more likely that he'd forgotten to return their call until he'd heard the news they'd been sighted off the base. But he'd let the matter drop for now.

"We discovered who was behind those kidnappings," Naruto answered. "It was Orochimaru's first officer, Kabuto."

"Are you certain of that?" Kakashi asked, his voice taking on a very serious tone.

"We've taken him prisoner," he replied. "You can confirm his identity yourself. He was running medical experiments on his captives and we didn't even find any survivors."

"That's very troublesome news," Kakashi said solemnly. "I want you to write up a full report if you haven't already done so. I'll read it over after I've arranged for Kabuto to be questioned. Until then, keep this information to yourself and don't let anyone in the base see your captive."

"Understood, sir," Naruto replied.

It looked like even the rear admiral found it unlikely that this only went as far as Kabuto.

* * *

Naruto and his crew sat in a private briefing room with Kakashi in the G-5 base. They hadn't heard anything about the situation since a couple of marines had snuck Kabuto off their ship with a bag over his head the night before. So Naruto was hoping that's what this was about.

"Kabuto insists he acted alone in this matter," Kakashi informed them.

That was the topic he wanted to discuss, but he'd hoped they'd been able to get something out of the man.

"I don't believe him of course," Kakashi continued. "But we're going to need more than what we have to convince the higher ups to strip Orochimaru of his title."

"And you want us to get that information somehow?" Naruto questioned.

"I hope so," Kakashi answered. "We do have enough to warrant a surprise inspection of Orochimaru's headquarters. He's always been more attached to his title than any other of the Shichibukai, so he should put on his best act of cooperating."

"I assume because we're here that you want us to perform this inspection?" Naruto asked.

"Correct," he confirmed. "Your mission is not to confront Orochimaru. If you find any proof that he's involved, don't let him know you did. Whatever you discover, do your best to get out without incident and report your findings to me."

"Do you have any other details that could be of use to this mission?" Shino asked, seeming not the least bit concerned about addressing the rear admiral, despite being a civilian himself.

"Only that his headquarters are comprised of a mansion built on a small island," Kakashi answered. "He's rarely known to leave the island, so it's unlikely he'll be gone. Even if they claim he is, be insistent on the inspection. I've already had an eternal pose sent to your ship that will guide you there."

"Wait, you have an eternal pose to a guy's house?" Kiba asked. "Is there a village or something on the same island?"

"No, his mansion is the only building on the island," Kakashi replied. "But we're not about to trust a pirate no matter what promises they make. Given how dangerous of a pirate he is, we made more than a few eternal poses to that particular island."

"Is he really that dangerous?" Nojiko asked nervously.

"We don't know if he has a devil fruit ability," Kakashi admitted. "But his physical abilities are very high. He's the only known pirate to fight Naruto here's father and manage to escape. Now, are there any further questions?"

"No, sir," Naruto replied after giving his crew a moment to bring up any other concerns they had.

"Then I want you to leave immediately," he ordered. "The longer we wait, the more likely news of this will reach Orochimaru, and this isn't likely to work unless we catch him off guard."

* * *

Naruto felt a sudden burst of speed as he was practicing his Soru on the deck. It was almost as if he'd gotten a second wind or something. His speed training must be paying off, but it still was odd to have a noticeable performance jump in the middle of training. Maybe it had just been his imagination.

Whatever it was, he supposed it didn't really matter. He could only hope he continued to improve this quickly. He certainly wouldn't mind another surprise level up in speed before they reached Orochimaru's headquarters in about a day.

Picking up a barbell that was lying on the deck he began to do crunches. Greater muscles strength was one of the keys to moving faster, after all. But it seemed his speed wasn't the only thing he was making great strides in, as the weights felt significantly lighter than the day before.

He was distracted briefly from his training as a seagull set down on the roof of the galley. They were pretty far from land so the bird must have gotten lost or something. It was probably using their ship to get some rest from flying.

It was then Naruto noticed that it was almost noon. How had he let time get away from him that much? He was sure it should still be a few hours before noon."

"There's a ship behind us!" Nojiko yelled down from the crow's nest.

He sent a clone to grab a telescope for him while he went to have a look himself. But he was surprised to see how close the ship actually was. Close enough that he could make out people on the deck with his naked eye, even if they were little more than specks.

"Why are you just telling us this now?" Kiba called up to Nojiko, as the girl was climbing her way back down to the deck.

"I swear, they weren't there a minute ago," Nojiko answered defensively.

Naruto found that doubtful, as the ship looked to be a fat cargo ship. He couldn't see how it was able to gain on them at all, let alone fast enough to sneak up on a watchful lookout. But he decided to keep his concerns to himself for now. He clone returned with a telescope allowing him to get a closer look at the ship.

"Bring us to a stop," he ordered. "The other ship is waving us down."

The ship appeared to be a simple merchant vessel. It wasn't much longer than their own ship but was nearly twice as wide. Neither the ship nor the dozen or so men bustling about on its deck looked to be heavily armed, so Naruto let the ship pull up next to them.

"I'm Captain Smith," a man greeted.

He wasn't a very tall man, and looked to be about a few pounds heavier than he probably would have liked. His hair still had hints of its original brown color, but had been taken over almost entirely by gray.

"I'm sorry to bother you," he continued, "but it seems that somehow my crew didn't store enough food and water and only realized it when we ran out. We still have about a days worth of sailing until we reach our destination, and we were hoping you could spare some provisions."

"That shouldn't be a problem," Naruto answered, then turned to his crew. "Shino, Kiba, why don't you go see what we have in the galley."

"We really do appreciate it," the captain replied. "We'd have probably survived, but a day without food and water isn't exactly a pleasant experience."

At that moment Kiba and Shino returned, looking none-too-pleased. Well, Kiba didn't look pleased, he still couldn't read Shino most of the time.

"There's a problem," Shino declared. "Our food supplies are much lower than they should be and we're nearly out of water."

Their ships were still pulled up close enough together that the captain of the other ship overheard Shino's declaration.

"I find it very odd that we would both have the same problem," he stated. "Something strange is going on here, I'd wager."

"Well, it seems we don't have much, but we'll share what we have," Naruto told the man.

Shino however pulled him to the side.

"He's right, this whole situation is highly suspicious," he whispered to Naruto. "However, I don't think we can discount the possibility that they themselves are behind this. I would recommend we give them nothing and depart as soon as possible."

"I'm not about to leave them without any food or water," Naruto whispered back harshly.

"They said themselves they'll make it to their destination without much risk to their life," Shino pointed out.

Naruto wasn't about to argue this point any further.

"Give them about two-thirds of our food and water," he ordered loudly enough for everyone to hear. "It looks like their crew is a lot larger than ours, they'll need it more than we will."

Shino didn't protest further, but the bounty hunter very carefully watched the procedure as the food and water was passed off to other ship. Even after the ships had pulled apart and gone off on toward their own destinations, he kept a watchful eye until it had passed over the horizon.

"I recommend we don't consume any of the provisions that remain," Shino told him.

"Why would that be?" Naruto asked.

"It could very well be poisoned," Shino answered. "By whoever it is who stole the rest of our supplies."

"If they wanted us poisoned, why steal some of our supplies?" Naruto asked. "That would only make us suspicious."

"They may not have had enough to contaminate all our supplies," Shino answered. "And if they want us dead before we arrived at our destination, they would need to make sure we consumed the poisoned fare before then."

"If this is Orochimaru's doing, why steal from the other ship too?" Naruto asked. "They're not even headed to the same place."

"I admit there are a lot of questions," Shino replied, "but that doesn't excuse recklessness. The missing food and water combined with an inexplicably strong thirst. It seems to me that someone wants us to drink that water."

"Wait, what inexplicably strong thirst?" Naruto asked.

"You're not thirsty?" Shino queried.

"No," Naruto answered.

"Are any of you thirsty?" Naruto called out to the rest of the crew, but they all responded with a negative.

"It's good to be cautious," Naruto told him, "but I'm not going to throw out our provisions every time something odd happens."

"Still, I'm going to avoid consumption myself," Shino insisted.

"If that's how you feel, go right ahead," Naruto agreed.

Still, Shino had made him a little nervous. Even though he wasn't particularly hungry or thirsty, he had some food and water himself. If it was poisoned, hopefully he would show signs before anyone else had any.

He was a bit unsettled as he continued his training that afternoon. He did feel like he hadn't had enough sleep. But come to think of, he was pretty sure he'd felt that way since before they'd even noticed their missing supplies.

Well, it'd have to be a very slow acting poison to get him at this point. And he'd rather not make himself a hypochondriac, so maybe he should just do what his body was suggesting and get a little sleep. Heading to his cabin, he actually fell asleep pretty quickly, and didn't wake from his unplanned nap until the sun had already set.

Well, hours later and he still felt fine. He supposed he should go let Shino know the good news. Actually, he could use another drink himself. But when he got to the galley, he found no water left. The rest of the crew must have finished it off.

He just hoped Shino had given in and got himself some before it ran out. Anyway, he wasn't sure what time it was, but he should probably see if Tashigi was still up. Naruto was sure she'd want to get some training in tonight if she was.

Stopping in his tracks, Naruto had to wonder if he was going crazy. It was suddenly dark out. Although, oddly enough, his eyes seemed to have already adjusted to the dim light.

"Who turned out the sun?" Kiba cried out.

At least if he was delusional, Kiba was sharing in his delusion. Unless, of course, Kiba's cry hadn't been real either. But this was no time to be doubting his sanity.

"Does anyone know what's going on?" Naruto asked.

But his crew seemed as much at a loss as him.

"There's a ship behind us!" Nojiko called out from the crow's nest.

Sending a clone to grab a telescope he went to have a look himself. But he was surprised to see how close the ship actually was. Maybe this mystery vessel was behind the unexplained change from day to night.

"Bring us to a stop," he ordered.

His clone returned with a telescope and he was able to get a better look at their pursuers. The ship appeared to be a simple merchant vessel. It wasn't much longer than their own ship but was nearly twice as wide.

Neither the ship nor the dozen or so men bustling about on its deck looked to be heavily armed. So Naruto let the other ship pull up next to them.

"I'm Captain Smith," a man called out. "And this may sound strange, but was it day just a moment ago?"

"That was our impression," Naruto confirmed.

"Then you may want to check your food and water," he told them.

"Go take a look, Kiba," he ordered.

The young marine ran off and quickly returned with a panicked look.

"We're all out of water and there's hardly any food left," he informed them.

"It seems like both our ships have been affected the same way," Captain Smith told them. "I don't suppose you have any idea what's going on do you?"

"None," Naruto answered.

"Then I suggest we get sailing," he replied. "With no supplies we'll want to make our journeys as short as possible."

"That probably would be best," Naruto agreed.

As the ships set off in different directions Naruto's crew went their separate ways as well. None of them had any clue what was happening, so they had decided there was nothing they could do but continue on their way.

Naruto resisted the urge to train. They still had about a day until they reached their destination, and he didn't want to waste any water on sweat. So the unnatural night passed very slowly. He was even wondering if the sun would come up at all. Who could be certain when it had just disappeared like that?

So it was a great relief when the horizon did start to brighten. Although as the day continued, he was more than a little worried the sun would disappear again. He never would have imagined the day would come where he'd be doubting the motion of the sun.

He idly noticed a seagull set down on the roof of the galley right before Shino walked out of it. Naruto became a little concerned as Shino appeared to be moving a bit unsteadily. His concern grew when bounty hunter fell to the ground a moment later. Rushing over to his crew member, he met up with Nojiko who had witnessed the event as well.

"Are you okay?" he asked Shino worriedly.

"Based on my symptoms, I believe I am suffering from dehydration," he answered. "But I should survive until we arrive at our destination."

"It hasn't been that long since our water disappeared," Nojiko pointed out. "Had you already gone for a while without anything to drink?

"I can't explain it," Shino replied. "But I almost instantly began suffering the symptoms of dehydration the moment it became night."

"Nojiko, go to the galley and see if you can find any food that might have water in it," he ordered.

"No, don't," Shino told her. "It may be poisoned."

"There's a chance it might be poisoned," Naruto agreed. "But you're definitely dying from lack of water."

"We can boil some seawater and collect the steam," Shino suggested. "We'll be able to get fresh water that way."

"Fine, we'll do it your way," Naruto conceded. "But if you die, I reserve the right to say I told you so."

It didn't take Naruto long to find a bucket and tie a rope to it, so he soon had himself some seawater. Taking it to the galley, they put it in a pot to begin to boil. He wondered how much water they'd even be able to get though. They didn't really have the right equipment for collecting and condensing the steam.

Naruto's eyes widened as a large ship appeared out of nowhere only ten feet of their port side. They were clearly pirates given the skull and crossbones engulfed in a large flame painted on the sails. Even worse they were already firing shots at their ship.

His clones were each taken out by gunshots while they were still flatfooted. But for some reason they were shooting nets at him and his crew members. He dodged the net aimed at him, and Tashigi had taken out Shigure and cut right through the one headed for her.

But Kiba and Akamaru had been caught off guard and captured. Glancing up, he saw that even Nojiko in the crow's nest had been wrapped up in a net. It was as if they'd already had their net guns aimed at them when they'd appeared.

The worst part though was Shino. They hadn't even aimed at him, but for some reason, he'd collapsed to the ground. Several of the pirates had now jumped across to their ship. One of them, a black haired woman with a very distinctive red eye color called out to them.

"Surrender and none of you will be hurt," she declared.

But Naruto wasn't about to surrender to a pirate. If he got a little closer to their ship, he could summon clones behind the rifle holding pirates who were standing on the far end of their ship. As it stood too many of his crew members were unable to dodge if fired upon, so taking them out was a high priority.

Dashing toward the woman who had just spoken, he figured he could kill two birds with one stone. He saw her run to his right as if trying to circle behind him. But he let her go for now, taking out those guns was a higher priority. And he was just about in range.

Suddenly Naruto found the pirate woman off to his right, how had she gotten over there? He hadn't even seen her move. Could she really be too fast for his eyes to even follow? But no, she was moving fast, but Kabuto had been faster.

She seemed to be trying to circle behind him, and Naruto briefly considered if he should try to stop her. No, he could deal with her later, taking out those guns was a higher priority. And he was just about in range.

Suddenly Naruto found his target had vanished completely. Stopping dead in his tracks, he looked around in a panic only to find a knife pressed up to his neck from behind him. Naruto activated his Tekkai, hoping it would be enough if the woman decided to slit his throat.

"I suggest you reconsider surrendering," the woman told him.

Glancing around to check on the state of his crew, he was astonished to see a young woman with black hair tied up into buns had already reached Kiba somehow. She was carrying an impressive array of weaponry and was a pointing a shortsword at him.

And standing next to Tashigi was a man about his own height and build with short, brown hair that was beginning to gray. Tashigi was sprawled on the floor, appearing to have caught her foot in the net she'd cut in half.

Whether she'd been disarmed or simply dropped her sword in the fall, he didn't know. But either way, Shigure wasn't within her reach.

"How did you teleport behind me?" he demanded of her.

"She didn't teleport, you did," Kiba told him from within the net.

What was Kiba talking about? He would have noticed if he'd suddenly changed location.

"And what did you do to Shino?" he asked angrily.

"You should be thanking us instead of accusing us," she replied. "We really had to hurry back here to keep your friend there from killing himself by refusing to drink anything."

"Refusing to drink?" Naruto asked in bewilderment. "I saw him drink at dinner last night."

"That wasn't last night," she told him. "You don't remember it, but you've been sailing this same section of sea over and over again for more than week."

"That's absurd," Naruto replied dismissively.

"That's my devil fruit power," she responded. "I can create an invisible sphere. Anything or anyone that leaves the sphere, will return to the point at which it entered with no memory of what occurred inside. That's how I got behind you, and why your own crew member says you teleported and not me."

He supposed it would explain how she had done it. But had they really been stuck here for over a week? If so, that was a truly frightening power.

"I don't care if you believe me or not," she continued, "but your friend over there is dying. As soon as you surrender I'll get him some help. Continue to delay, and he won't be the only one whose life will be at risk."

Naruto grit his teeth, but didn't see any other way out of this.

"Very well … I surrender," he declared.

* * *

Naruto found himself securely wrapped in chains, sitting on his own deck as pirates went through his ship for valuables. His clones were still an option, but given how all his crew members were similarly tied up and under guard, it didn't seem worth the risk at the moment.

Besides, so far they'd been honest about not hurting anyone. And they were taking care of Shino, who looked to be recovering already. For the sake of his crew, he would probably just let them take what they wanted and leave.

"You'll never guess who it is we captured," the girl with the hair buns called out as she came up from below deck.

"And who would that be?" the red eyed woman asked.

"According to this marine ID, their captain is one Lieutenant Namikaze Naruto," she replied enthusiastically.

"Namikaze?" The woman in front of him asked in shock.

"He could be related to Namikaze Minato," the young woman holding his ID suggested.

"He's my father," Naruto confirmed.

"Is that so?" So younger girl asked taking on an evil grin. "I always wished I could have had a chance to meet him, but I guess his son is the next best thing."

So saying, she grabbed a dagger with her left hand and a mace with her right. The predatory look she gave him made it clear that she hadn't wished to meet his father because she respected him so much."

"Tenten, stop," the other woman ordered. "We still have business with him."

"Then I'll make sure to leave him his tongue until you're finished with him," Tenten answered.

"You're going to make sure you don't hurt him at all is what you're going to do," the graying man from before replied from behind him, making Naruto wonder just how long he'd been there.

"I can't believe you of all people would protect him, Nawaki," Tenten accused him. "I don't care what you two say, I'm not about to let this opportunity get wasted."

"If you hurt him you'll regret it," the red eyed pirate told her.

"Now you're threatening me, over his son?" Tenten answered angrily.

"It wasn't supposed to be a threat," her fellow pirate replied apologetically.

"You said you have business with me," Naruto interrupted. "What exactly were you referring to?"

"Before that, I think it's only polite we introduce ourselves," Nawaki replied. "I'm Senju Nawaki, this is our captain, Yuuhi Kurenai, and the angry one is Tenten."

"As for what I wished to discuss," Kurenai told him, "we want to know what business you have with Orochimaru. I let a nice fat merchant ship escape to find out, so I expect some answers."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Naruto replied.

"Then you must be a very out of touch captain," Kurenai told him. "Because there's an Eternal Pose labeled 'Orochimaru's headquarters' sitting next to the helm."

"I'm not going reveal my orders to pirates," Naruto spat out.

"It's odd you have such distaste for pirates," Nawaki noted, "considering you're going to be working with one."

"Believe me, I'd just as soon see Orochimaru safely locked up in Impel Down," Naruto admitted. "Maybe you can have a nice cell next to him some day."

"Is that how you feel?" Tenten yelled at him. "Just because someone's a pirate it's alright to lock them up and torture them for the rest of their life?"

"That's enough Tenten," Nawaki berated her.

"This is our chance for revenge, Nawaki," Tenten pleaded with him. "You aren't going to let the captain go unavenged are you?"

"Tenten, their ship is going to need some food and water," Kurenai said coldly. "Bring some over for them."

"But …" Tenten started to protest before being quickly cut off.

"That's an order," Kurenai said firmly.

Sending him one last angry glare, Tenten stomped off.

"I actually have a proposal for you," Kurenai told him. "And it doesn't even require that you tell me what your orders are."

"I'm sort of a captive audience," Naruto answered. "So go ahead."

"We don't think much of Orochimaru ourselves," she began. "We've had some less than pleasant encounters with him in the past."

"Your point is?" Naruto asked.

"We've been keeping an eye on him," Kurenai replied. "And it's been a long time since we've seen his base so poorly defended. He first officer and a number of his best men are away."

Naruto had to wonder just how they knew that much. However they did it, spying on one of the Shichibukai was a move few pirates would have the guts to do."

"Now we'd love to take this chance to bloody his nose a bit," Kurenai continued. "But we're not about to underestimate the man himself. This is where you come in."

"Let me guess, you want me to keep him busy while you torch the countryside?" Naruto asked.

"That's more or less right," she confirmed. "It should be a win-win situation for you. Whether we kill his men, or they kill us, either way it's pirates that die right?"

"How do you know I won't just let him hunt you down?" Naruto asked. "Or maybe even warn him?"

"I don't," she admitted. "But thanks to my power, at the very least I'm confident in my ability to run away. I'm not even going to insist you agree to help me, but I hope you'll make the right choice when we begin our assault."

As much as the notion of cooperating with pirates turned his stomach, it might be a good idea to listen. If they managed to pull away some of Orochimaru's men, that would mean fewer people he could set to obstructing their investigation. It also meant fewer people to fight if things got ugly.

"As soon as we finish getting you resupplied we'll be on our way," Kurenai told him. "As a sign of good faith, we'll even leave you everything but your cash."

"We don't even let friends go through without paying the toll," Nawaki added. "It sets a bad precedent."

"We'll leave the keys to your chains on the deck," Kurenai continued. "I'm sure you can use those clones of yours to set yourself free."

Now if only they hadn't lost more than a week of time. Even if news hadn't leaked to Orochimaru, he may very well have grown suspicious when he hadn't heard from his first officer. He just hoped the man didn't have any unpleasant surprises in store for them.

* * *

**Naruto's Clone Adventures**

"It looks like they're finally here," Shikamaru declared.

And indeed, Naruto saw a number of seedy looking men gathering on the pier near Ino's ship.

"Well, get down there and stop them, you two," Ino ordered.

"Wait, why do I have to go?" Shikamaru protested.

"To make up for not being there when I was kidnapped," she answered.

"Did you have to rescue her?" Shikamaru asked as they walked off the boat down to the pier.

"I'm beginning to regret that decision myself," Naruto replied.

Almost as soon they were off, Naruto heard a sound behind him and saw the ship beginning to pull away.

"Is she leaving us here by ourselves?" Naruto asked in disbelief.

"Of course," Shikamaru answered dryly. "Why would she risk her own hide when we she's not sure we can win?"

There were now about thirty men gathered there watching them. Because of that, Naruto almost missed a small man standing behind the group until he called out to them.

"So, your boss is fleeing but she left your here as a sacrificial offering?" he asked mockingly.

"That's the one who interfered, boss," a voice called out form next to the small man.

Naruto recognized him as the man who'd run off when he'd rescued Ino. And he wagered his boss would be Gato.

"Well, if she's giving you to me as a gift, I may just let her off the hook. As long as she never shows up around here again, that is," Gato told him..

He probably would have continued his taunting, if a large man hadn't just grabbed Gato from behind and held a knife to his throat.

"Call off your men if you want to live," he could hear the man order Gato.

"You heard him," Gato screeched. "Drop your weapons!"

"Did you set this up?" Naruto asked Shikamaru.

"Yeah," he confirmed. "Don't take this the wrong way, but no matter how good you are, I feel safer doing this without fighting."

Several of the men near Gato complied with their orders, but most of them didn't so much as flinch.

"Sorry," one of them called out insincerely, "but we were paid to kill some people for you. My men would be rather disappointed if we just let them go now."

"You worthless pirates!" Gato yelled angrily. "You'll pay for this treachery!"

"Looks like we won't be able to avoid a fight after all," Naruto pointed out.

"Just my luck," he replied. "I hope Ino was right about you."

"I'll do what I can," Naruto promised.

* * *

**AN**

Another note on the clone side story. Just because I'm writing them in the same chapter, don't assume the events are occurring at the same time as the current chapter. The main story and side story each have their own timelines.

Anyway, I had a lot of fun writing this chapter, and I'm hoping it will get some of you speculating on things to come. Also, just in case anyone didn't recognize the name, Nawaki is Tsunade's younger brother only grown up and less dead. As for the next chapter, Orochimaru will finally make his appearance.

Finally, chapter 8 was another great chapter for reviews. Not just in numbers, but in quality as many of them included genuinely helpful comments. Anyway, I'm quite pleased this story is getting such a good reception. I'll try to keep the chapters coming, so hopefully you guys will do the same with the reviews.


	10. Chapter 10

As far as Naruto could tell, the pirates had been true to their word. They'd left his crew unharmed and with an ample supply of food and water. In addition, they couldn't find anything that was missing other than some cash. And they'd even missed where he hid the rest of the bounty money. He supposed that even pirates could keep their word when they want something from you.

Although it did remind him that he had no idea what happened to that money his clone took to go shopping with Nojiko. He should know everything the clone did, but searching his memories, he couldn't remember a thing about that incident. Maybe there was a range limit on the memory transfer?

But he could always ask Nojiko later, he had more important things to deal with. They were now only hours from Orochimaru's base, and he needed to make sure they had a plan. With that in mind, he gathered his crew together to discuss the situation with them.

"Some of you of you may have overheard this," he began when they'd all gathered on the deck, "but those pirates we just dealt with are planning to assault Orochimaru's base while we're there. They want us to keep him busy as they'd rather not deal with one of the Shichibukai."

"I think we should warn him," Tashigi suggested. "As little as I like the Shichibukai, they're at least somewhat under government control. So at the very least they're better than pirates that just go around setting traps for whatever ships pass by."

"Are you forgetting that Orochimaru is kidnapping and experimenting on whoever he can get his hands on?" Nojiko countered. "It seems to me that's much worse than anything Kurenai's crew did."

"We're not even certain he had anything to do with that," Tashigi argued. "That's what we're here to find out."

"If I might interrupt," Shino interjected, "I think our most prudent course of action would be not to warn Orochimaru. The confusion will make it easier for us to investigate his manor. However, I don't believe we should attempt to stop him from leaving, as having him gone could only further aid our efforts."

"You want us to play both sides against each other?" Kiba asked. "Don't you think that's a bit of a dirty tactic?"

"We are under no obligation to help either side in this conflict," Shino replied. "I find nothing unethical about remaining uninvolved when doing so is in our best interest."

Naruto hadn't expected this discussion to become so volatile so quickly. Well, he was captain of this ship, so it was his responsibility to resolve this.

"I would like to add that Kurenai said they were planning to run if Orochimaru comes after them himself," he pointed out. "So if they decide not to give chase we may not have them distracted for long."

"It would also give him cause to wonder why they would attack only to flee," Shino added. "And it could be dangerous to give him any reason to believe we were involved in the planning of the attack."

"So here's what we're going to do," Naruto declared firmly. "We won't warn Orochimaru, and if we can maneuver him into staying we'll do so. However, don't push too hard if he wants to leave, we don't want to say anything that would make him suspicious."

He saw Shino nodding in approval of his plan, and if anyone was opposed to it they were keeping it to themselves. Good. Given the bickering that had just occurred he was afraid he'd have to deal with some dissent.

"Now, we're going to need a couple of people to stay on the ship," Naruto continued. "While he may not want to attack us openly, I wouldn't put sabotage past Orochimaru. All he'd have to do was take out our den den mushi and he'd have our whole trip back to arrange an accident he could 'prove' he had nothing to do with."

"This inspection is official marine business," Tashigi pointed out. "I think those of us who are actually marines should go. Besides, I doubt Orochimaru is going to want to let anyone he doesn't have to snoop around his house. I don't see how we can insist he let in anyone beyond the three of us."

"I could just borrow a uniform," Nojiko argued.

"It's against regulations for us to allow that," Tashigi insisted.

"Tashigi makes a good point," Naruto admitted. "But I would like to bring Shino along if possible."

Even in the short time he'd been with them, Shino had impressed him with his reasoning skills. Given this was supposed to be an investigation, those very skills could prove quite valuable.

"And I guess that means Nojiko and Akamaru will be guarding the ship," Naruto concluded.

"Are you sure we'll be enough to handle it if they try something?" Nojiko asked.

Akamaru barked disapprovingly at Nojiko's question.

"I wasn't insulting you, Akamaru," she replied defensively. "But you and Kiba fight so well together, I just thought the ship would be much better defended if he stayed instead of me."

"Hey, you heard what Tashigi said," Kiba reminded her. "This is marine business."

"Look, I'll leave a couple of clones behind," Naruto promised. "And if things get really dangerous, one of them can dispel itself to let us know."

"Fine," Nojiko conceded bitterly.

Well, Naruto supposed it was better to have an enthusiastic crew that all wanted to go than a lazy one that fought over who got to stay behind.

"Okay then," Naruto announced. "With that settled let's finish our preparations. We don't have much time left until we arrive."

* * *

This was one time they definitely wanted it to be clear their ship was a marine vessel. So a large marine flag was flying proudly from their main mast as they neared Orochimaru's island. It had been accurate of Kakashi to call the building a mansion. It was a two story complex that probably could have fit every building on Leaf Island inside it with room to spare.

It was located on the western end of the island, with the rest of the land being mostly taken up by forest. As they were approaching the docks, his eyes couldn't help but be drawn to to a very intimidating vessel that was easily the size of a marine battleship.

Kurenai's ship had been large, but if their respective boats were the only factor, they couldn't hope to win against that monstrosity. And the way it just bristling with cannons, gave the whole ship the feeling of a predator.

The dock itself actually looked to be able to hold several ships of that size, which was very impressive for a private island. It really drove home the fact that this was one of the Shichibukai they were dealing with. Currently, however, the only other ships were a couple of small skiffs, which left them plenty of room to moor their own ship.

But before they'd even had a chance to do so, a very distinctive figure made it's way out of the main doors of the mansion. Orochimaru's unnaturally white face was not one that would easily be forgotten, even if you'd only seen his picture once. So it was clear he would not be feigning absence.

The two clones he was leaving behind had long been hiding in the galley, and he didn't have any others out. Naruto wasn't about to give these pirates any hint of his powers if he didn't have to. And by the time they'd finished the mooring process and disembarked, Orochimaru already stood waiting on the shore.

Neither he, nor the several men he had surrounding him, showed any signs of hostility. But Naruto still approached them warily with Tashigi and Kiba flanking him and Shino bringing up the rear. Orochimaru greeted them with a smile that may have been intended to be charming but really was just unsettling.

"Is there something the marines need from me?" he asked. "You really should have just called if that was the case. There's no need to send someone all the way out here."

"I'm afraid it's somewhat more serious than that," Naruto told him. "Your first officer was caught kidnapping and experimenting on ordinary civilians. He's been captured on numerous charges of murder, among other things."

"I'm afraid that's quite troubling news," Orochimaru declared, nor twisting his lips into a small frown that was actually a good bit less offputting than his smile. "I trust you have sufficient evidence he was behind this?"

If the man was even trying to sound innocent, he wasn't doing a very good job. Still, Naruto highly doubted his tone of voice would be considered sufficient evidence of his involvement.

"You can attend the trial if you'd like," Naruto answered. "But I can assure you the evidence is quite irrefutable."

"I may just do that, but for now I'll take your word for it," he answered. "Although this does explain what you're doing here. You've come to see if he was acting under my orders."

"That's right," Naruto answered. "This is a surprise inspection of your compound. Do you have a problem with that?"

"Of course not," the man answered. "I have nothing to hide. Even if Kabuto was experimenting on people as you say, he was the one with interest in medicine, not me. I'd hardly risk my position to allow him to further his research."

He did have a point there. As much as their profile of Kabuto claimed him to be extremely loyal to his captain, Naruto had no idea why Orochimaru would order the kidnappings.

"Good, then you'll start by taking us to your office," Naruto told him. "Or wherever it is you store any documents you might have."

"If you insist," Orochimaru replied. "Although I'm sure you'll find them to be quite dull. Contracts for supplies, inventory sheets, personnel reports and the like. You'll find that running a government sponsored pirate operation isn't all that different from running a marine base."

"I suggest you take us there with haste," Shino interjected. "Otherwise it might be seen as an attempt to delay us while incriminating evidence is hidden."

"Of course, I wouldn't want you to think I'm doing anything of the sort," he replied. "So right this way."

Orochimaru lead them along the path to the manor, and they were about to enter when a young white haired man came running up to them from behind.

"What is it, Suigetsu?" Orochimaru asked.

"The Burning Skull pirates have been spotted heading this way," he replied, giving Naruto a view of his rather sharp set of teeth.

Meanwhile Naruto was hoping neither he nor his crew were giving any outward signs that they'd known something like this would happen. At the very least surprise wasn't difficult to fake. This had happened much sooner than he'd expected. It was so soon after they'd arrived that Naruto had to wonder if they'd been spying on them by some means.

"They would choose now to cause trouble wouldn't they?" Orochimaru asked rhetorically. "But if they want to hasten their deaths, who am I to stop them? Eliminate them all."

"You're not coming?" Suigetsu asked curiously.

"Why would I?" he answered. "They're just a bunch of trash that refuses to realize they're only a shadow of their former selves. They're no longer in my league."

So saying he turned away dismissively before pausing as if in thought

"Actually, take Juugo with in case they've got a little more fight left in them than I give them credit for," he amended.

"Do you want their ship in one piece?" Suigetsu queried.

"I'd rather not see that miserable piece of driftwood again," Orochimaru replied. "Sink it."

"Aye aye, captain," Suigetsu responded, then turned to leave.

The other pirates in the room followed him out, leaving Orochimaru alone with Naruto and his crew. He hadn't expected the man to volunteer to stay on his own. It certainly gave reason to doubt his claim that he had nothing to hide.

"Now if you'll follow me," Orochimaru told them, "I'll continue where we left off before I'm accused of plotting an assault on my own base just to stall you from reaching my office."

The man quickly lead them up an ornate staircase and down a hallway on the second floor. Naruto was pleased to see that none of Orochimaru's subordinates were in sight. So when Orochimaru opened a door on the left and led them inside, Naruto discreetly summoned a clone outside in the hallway.

Let the man distract them however he wanted, his clone was going to do some real investigating out from under Orochimaru's watchful eyes.

* * *

Tenten watched as they drew closer to Orochimaru's ship. It quickly became apparent that their own ship was the only one moving. The large vessel just remained anchored in the open water, as if waiting for them to approach.

"It looks like they've been warned about your power," Nawaki declared, voicing Tenten's own thoughts. "Pity, it would certainly have made things simpler if you could have trapped them."

As powerful as Kurenai's ability could be in the right circumstances, it did have several weaknesses. And their opponents seemed fully aware of the fact that Kurenai could not simply surround someone in her power and trap them. They had to enter the distortion spheres she created after it was put up. So as long as they stayed where they were, they were safe from her power.

"Orochimaru isn't on board," Nawaki informed them. "So what do you say we go greet our hosts?"

"Yes, head straight for them," Kurenai ordered. "We'll drop anchor right off their bow. Nawaki, do you think you can take care of their cannons by yourself?"

"Shouldn't be a problem," he answered.

"Good, then board their ship as soon as you have the chance," she told him. "I suspect most of them will come to us, but don't take any unnecessary risks. If resistance is too strong, get back over here."

"You know as well as I do there isn't anyone who would be 'too strong' for me on that ship," Nawaki boasted.

"Just don't get killed because you can't reign in that ego of yours," she ordered.

Their planning was interrupted by the sound of cannon fire. Locating the enemy projectile, Nawaki positioned himself in its path and batted it away.

"Return fire," Kurenai ordered.

Their return shot was on target to hit the enemy ship, but a white haired young man with a truly massive sword sliced it clean in half. The resulting pieces no longer had the momentum to damage their deck, and bounced harmlessly where they landed.

"Looks like we're going to have to settle this the old fashioned way," Nawaki declared.

Tenten could sense the excitement coming from the older man as he pulled out his spiked knuckles and slipped them on. Honestly, Tenten was hoping she would be the one to fight that swordsman. It had been a long time since she'd had a proper sword-fight, and she'd like a chance to test her skills.

The other ship was much larger than theirs and it's deck was significantly higher above the water. The height difference allowed five of them to jump across the gap between their vessels while they were still in the process of dropping anchor and coming to a halt.

As soon as they landed they began firing their weapons, but it didn't even look like they were aiming for anyone in particular. So, they were using their gunfire to check for Kurenai's distortions. They really were well informed.

Nawaki, however, wasn't about to let them continue unchallenged, and charged directly into the center of the group, quickly tossing all five of them overboard. Having dealt with them, he then leaped up onto the enemy ship. In the process, he passed right by the swordsman from earlier, who was jumping down to their ship at the same time Nawaki was heading for the white haired man's.

Tenten took the opportunity to unsheathe her sword in preparation. She was pleased to see she would get her chance to confront the man. Several other of Orochimaru's men had already joined the swordsman on their bow, and she could see a number more lining up on the other ship in preparation to follow them.

A barely noticeable shimmer appeared in front of where their opponents stood. Tenten carefully noted the position, as a moment later, all visible indication of the distortion vanished. But all of Orochimaru's subordinates were moving around it despite that fact.

It didn't seem they'd be able to count on Kurenai's power being a major factor in this battle. She could only have one distortion up at a time, and it was clear they knew how to spot them being formed. Well then, she'd just take care of this herself.

Charging her target, she sent a swing with the intent of decapitating him. But despite the size of her opponents sword, he easily brought it up to parry. Countering with his own blow, Tenten found it required nearly all of her strength to block the powerful attack.

"You're not bad for a no name pirate on a third rate crew," the man told her.

"Speaking of no name pirates, I don't believe I've ever heard of you," Tenten countered.

"The name's Suigetsu," he supplied. "I'd tell you to remember it, but you won't be alive long enough for it matter."

"We'll just see who comes out of this alive," Tenten fired back.

The challenge made, the two of them began crossing swords at a level even many career pirates would likely never see. Tenten had hoped the weight of that absurdly large sword would slow his movements enough that she could make quick work of him.

But while that almost certainly had something to do with her having the upper hand in speed, her advantage was countered by the fact that one of his strikes could not be lightly parried. If she wanted to block, she had to be willing to brace herself and commit to it. And of course there was his longer range to consider.

If that was all, it might still be an even fight, but Tenten was good enough with the sword to recognize someone who was better. Glancing around at how the rest of the fighting was going, it wasn't as good as she'd have hoped. Their opponents had kept coming and they were already outnumbered on their own ship.

Kurenai was doing a good a job of cutting down their numbers. In fact, a man fell to her knife in his back in the brief moment she'd glanced over, and there were a number of dead men already surrounding her. But it would take her some time to work through the swarm of opponents. Without the aid of her power, Tenten was probably slightly more dangerous than her acting captain.

And with Nawaki on the other ship, there really wasn't anyone else on their crew they could count on. There was a day when they'd been one of the most feared group of pirates on the Grand Line. They'd had an elite crew that Orochimaru would have thought twice about challenging even with all of his best men to support him.

But after that thrice cursed Minato had sent their real captain to Impel Down, most of the old crew had left over time. If her memory served, other than Nawaki, Kurenai, and herself, there were only two other crew members who had actually served under the captain. And those two were nobodies who had joined right near the end.

But the sad thing was, they were still better than most of men they'd found to replace the old crew. Not that she could really blame them for leaving. The captain had been a great woman who Tenten had admired more than anyone.

She'd been born on this ship with her parents both serving on it, but they'd passed away before Tenten was even old enough to remember them. So her captain had even become sort of a mother to her and the day she learned of her capture was still the most traumatic of her life.

But Tenten pulled her mind away from that line of thought. Even if she didn't think much of the current crew, it wasn't fair of her to leave them to fend for themselves just so she could practice her swordplay. It was time to get serious.

But as soon as she'd made that resolution, Suigetsu pulled his sword a few inches back toward himself in mid-swing. So instead of her parry hitting the other sword where she intended, it fell into a head sized semicircular hole cut in the blade.

This only delayed the impact a moment, but it was enough to throw her a bit off balance. Suigetsu used that opportunity to twist his sword, and wrench her own weapon out her hands, sending it flying to the side.

"You should have spent more time practicing with your sword instead of playing with your other toys," he mocked, having noticed array of weapons of various types she had strapped to her body.

Having disarmed her of her sword, Suigetsu pulled back his own weapon, intending to go in for the killing stroke. But this situation suited Tenten just fine. She was already using the wire she'd wrapped around the hilt of her sword to swing it back around in order to slice into Suigetsu's legs.

But he saw the attack in time and jumped over it, not that Tenten had expected any less. Still, it had thrown off his attack, allowing Tenten to easily duck under the horizontal swing he was making. And once in the air, the momentum already imparted in his swing carried him off to his left.

When he landed he turned his motion into a roll to avoid a followup swing from Tenten who had regained her sword. But instead of continuing their swordplay, Tenten quickly pulled out a knife and flung it at Suigetsu. The young man, however, simply leaned his head to the side to let it pass an inch to the left of his face.

Standing back he prepared to resume his attack only to drop to the ground just in time to avoid the knife that had suddenly reappeared in front of him. In fact, he hadn't even managed to prevent the loss of some hair on the top of his head. The third time the knife passed by he was ready for it, and blocked it with his sword, letting it fall to the ground.

"So not only are you unable to match me with swords, you're not even willing to fight one on one?" he asked.

But Tenten wasn't going to let him bait her, not after her plan had been a success. Suigetsu may have been told about Kurenai's ability, but Tenten had years of experience working with it. And one thing she'd learned, was to always keep track of where a distortion was.

She was just glad Kurenai had noticed what she was planning and hadn't replaced it, seeing as she could only have one out at a time. Another fortunate turn was that it looked as if he didn't know all the tricks of the distortions. If he had, he'd know that as long as he left it at the same point he entered, it wouldn't have any effect on him.

But if he considered himself trapped, it might as well be true. She could just leave him there, but there was the chance he'd figure out that weakness if she did. Besides, if she finished him off, Kurenai would be free to make use of her power elsewhere.

"Just because you want to limit yourself to one weapon doesn't mean I have to," Tenten replied. "How about I show you the benefit of a little variety?"

Circling around her opponent she began to send all manner of weaponry in his direction. Knives, daggers, shuriken, pretty much any pointy object she had on her, and believe her, she had a great deal of them on her. She tried a variety of trajectories for the weapons, but he still managed to block them all.

Given the size of that sword, and the fact he wasn't really very large, it made a pretty decent shield. He was careful to make sure they all landed somewhere around his feet as well, rather than simply being deflected back to the edge of the distortion. So he wasn't even left to face them more than once.

"You're running out of weapons," he taunted.

"Maybe so," she replied, "but I'm not out yet."

Unwrapping a long metal chain from around her waist, she moved to just outside the edge of the distortion and swung it in a horizontal arc at Suigetsu. He moved his sword in a path to block it, but Tenten just smirked. Thrusting her arms down, she force the path of the chain down as well as it was now skidding across the ground.

Suigetsu's eyes widened as he realized what she was attempting. He thrust the point of his sword into the ground to block the chain's movement. But it had already collided with several of the weapons scattered across the ground, and those were sent sliding into other weapons in a chain reaction.

All in all, nearly two dozen of the were sent into the edge of the invisible sphere. As they all returned to the position and velocity they had originally entered the distortion at, it proved to be too much for the swordsman to handle all at once. She counted at least eight of them burying into his body.

"I'm impressed," she told him when she'd surveyed the result. "You managed to avoid being hit in any vital areas. Still I doubt you'll be able to put up much of fight in that condition. And if you're not careful, blood loss could become a problem."

She wasn't just mocking him either. Considering each of his limbs was now sporting at least one new accessory, she was surprised he was even still standing. She could see the hate boiling up in Suigetsu's eyes as he looked at her.

"Juugo, get over here this instant!" he yelled at the top of his lungs.

A few seconds later, a tall orange haired man dropped onto the bow of their ship. She could only assume he must be the Juugo whom Suigetsu was calling for.

"Are you alright?" Juugo asked with concern when he saw his companion's condition.

"Don't just stand there gawking! Transform and take care of these worms!" he ordered the man.

"Are you sure that's wise?" Juugo asked meekly.

"That's an order, you idiot!" Suigetsu raged. "What do you think Orochimaru had me bring you for?"

Juugo cringed back from Suigetsu. Tenten's first thought was to wonder just how dangerous a man who would cower like that could be. But when several of his fellow pirates began looking at him in fear and diving off the edge of their ship, she was forced to revise her opinion. She had a bad feeling about this.

* * *

Naruto's clone had been summoned disguised as one of the men that had been escorting Orochimaru. Prior to them all running out with Suigetsu to deal with Kurenai's attack anyway. Hopefully no one would find it suspicious if he snooped around looking like this. Although he wasn't sure what he would do if someone tried to talk to him, given that he hadn't heard the man speak.

But he could worry about that if it happened. For now he had some searching to do. He would wager that anything Orochimaru was trying to hide would be pretty far from where he'd led them. So he'd go back to the first floor and start searching there.

Going back down the stairs and into another hallway on the first floor, he'd passed only one person, who hadn't so much as nodded to him as they passed each other. With no one else in the hallway, he began to open doors, one by one, looking for anything suspicious.

He hadn't caught sight of anything of note yet when he came to a locked door. Naruto didn't know a thing about picking locks so for a moment he considered using Shigan to carve open the wood the lock was set in.

At least until he remembered he was a clone and he couldn't use that ability with his clones yet. It looked like if he wanted entrance was going to have to kick in the door. He hoped Orochimaru was hiding something in there that was really obvious at first glance, because he probably wouldn't get much time to look.

Breaking it open, he winced at the amount of noise the process made. Hurrying inside he was disappointed to see what appeared to be nothing more than an office. Still, he found a number of folders sitting on a desk and opening one began to skim through the papers.

But he couldn't find anything about kidnappings or human experiments. They just seemed to be boring reports. Take this one, which was apparently about an incident between King Wapol of Drum and King Nefertari of Arabasta some years back.

Wait a minute, hadn't the last paper he'd looked at been on a similar topic? Grabbing it again, he confirmed that was the case. Quickly opening another folder, he began skimming papers in it as well and quickly confirmed the pattern. These were all reports on influential people. Royalty, World Government officials, high ranking marine officers, tenryuubito, and the like.

They contained many details he doubted was public knowledge and seemed to focus very heavily on a certain aspect. Who they had reason to hate and why. Naruto couldn't think of any reason for gathering this that wasn't intended to stir up trouble.

This might not be proof of any actual wrongdoing, but he still considered it more important than the evidence they'd come to find. This information could very well be used to stir up chaos among the World Government. To turn nations against each other and ferment civil war.

Why Orochimaru would do such a thing, Naruto didn't know. But he certainly wouldn't trust a pirate not commit such an act just because he couldn't see a motive. Anyway, he shouldn't stay here any longer.

He was lucky no one had investigated the crash, but as soon as someone walked by they'd see the state of the door. If possible, he wanted his crew safely away before that happened. Without further ado, Naruto dismissed himself to pass on what he'd learned to the real Naruto.

* * *

Unsurprisingly, they'd found exactly what Orochimaru had said they would in this room. But Naruto was content to let the man waste their time. It would be too risky to find anything with him looking over their shoulder. He'd just let his clone do the real work.

Speaking of his clone, its memories had just been added to his own. Taking a few seconds to play them back in his head, he realized they should extract themselves as soon as possible.

"I say we put an end to this farce," Naruto told Orochimaru. "Even if there is proof you ordered Kabuto to do what he did, you're not about to let us find it. This is just a formality so the brass can save face. And as far as I'm concerned, we've done our job."

"Well, perhaps I can give you something to help out your superiors in that regard," Orochimaru offered.

Walking over to the desk that sat in the back of the room, he grabbed a piece of paper and a quill. Dipping it in some ink, he quickly scrawled out a message on it before reaching out to offer it to him.

"This is a signed affidavit swearing I had nothing to do with the kidnappings," he informed them.

Naruto walked up to him to accept the paper, and was just about to grab it when he was tackled to the side by Shino. As he was falling he was able to see a knife pass through a hole that opened up in Shino's side and embed itself in the door.

Orochimaru must have used the paper to lure him close and block the sight of his other hand as he grabbed his dagger and threw it. He was fortunate Shino had been so attentive and quick to react.

"What's the meaning of this?" he demanded as he climbed back to his feet.

"Don't play games with me," Orochimaru replied. "The marines wouldn't send anyone who would give up so quickly to investigate this. I don't know how you did it, but you must have found something. I'd wager there's a devil fruit power involved and that's the reason you were chosen for this in the first place."

He was right, it was unnatural to leave so quickly. Naruto wished he could have thought of a better excuse. But he'd assumed staying would be the riskier course of action given the state his clone had left that door in.

With his plan having failed, Naruto now had to figure out some way to get everyone out of here alive. Shino, however, was already making his move, having converted his entire body into a swarm of insects that was advancing toward the treacherous pirate.

In a blur of motion, Orochimaru reached out and grabbed a vase that was sitting on the desk. He then hurled the contents at the approaching swarm which proved to be a clear liquid of some sort. It was a direct hit, and many of the bugs were drenched, quickly falling to the ground.

Where the liquid itself hit the floor, it began to burn right through it, proving it was most definitely not water. The shock of the assault caused the remaining bugs to quickly return to a human shape.

Orochimaru was already in motion toward Shino with a pair of handcuffs he'd grabbed from somewhere. But Orochimaru reached the stunned bounty hunter first, slammed one end shut around his right wrist, stuck a key inside, and locked it.

Naruto reached him before he could do anything further, but the man easily danced back from his punch before dropping the key into his pocket.

"Those seastone handcuffs should take care of the troublesome one," Orochimaru gloated.

"You'll find he's not the only one you have to worry about," Tashigi told him as she unsheathed her sword.

"So that's how you want it?" Orochimaru asked, pulling his own sword out of its sheath. "I may not be as good as Mihawk, but I'm sure I can handle a whelp like you."

Tashigi for her part gasped upon seeing his sword.

"That's Kusanagi!" she declared excitedly. "One of the twelve Supreme Swords."

Just seeing the sword seemed to give her a new resolve as she gripped her own firmly.

"It will be good to see it taken from the likes of you," she told him resolutely.

"We're not going to be taking it," Naruto countermanded, summoning two clones and wishing he hadn't left both of his other two with Nojiko. "All of you are going to get back to the ship. I'll hold him off."

"We're not leaving you here alone," Kiba vowed such that Naruto was quite clear repeating the order wouldn't sway him. "It's four on one; we'll beat him somehow."

"You're mistaken if you think I'll let any of you leave alive," Orochimaru declared.

Then in another flash of speed, he was heading straight for Tashigi. She brought up her sword and parried his strike but looked almost surprised to have done so. And Naruto could see why. Kabuto had been fast, but Orochimaru was even faster than him.

However, that had left his back open to Naruto who had just caught up to the man. But faster than he would have though possible, Orochimaru spun completely around and sliced at Naruto. He stopped in his tracks and leaned back out of instinct, the sword coming so close to disemboweling him that it actually cut a slice through the shirt of his uniform.

He was grateful he'd been working so hard on improving his speed since his fight with Kabuto. Even the time they'd spent stuck in Kurenai's trap might have made the difference just now. He might not remember anything that happened, but all the physical conditioning he'd done was certainly noticeable.

But he saw Kiba moving to attack Orochimaru from the other side with that dagger he'd taken after their fight with Kabuto. Orochimaru was already focusing on Kiba as his next target, and Naruto knew that his friend wasn't fast enough to avoid the attack.

Kiba was saved, however, by one of Naruto's clones, who pushed him out of the way, taking the attack in his place. Naruto quickly summoned a new clone to replace the one that had saved Kiba. It was clear they were outclassed, but Naruto had a plan.

"We need to coordinate our attacks," Naruto called out. "He's too strong for us to fight him individually."

Kiba and Tashigi quickly listened, forming a circle around the man, along with Naruto and his two clones. But Orochimaru wasn't about to wait for them to get ready and dashed straight at Tashigi, who once again narrowly blocked.

Turning to Kiba, who was his next closest opponent, he kicked him into one of Naruto's clones, destroying it. At that point, Naruto and his remaining clone had caught up to the man. His clone was doing its best job to corral Orochimaru toward Naruto.

For his part, Naruto prepared a Shigan and sent it toward his opponent. But despite his clone's best efforts to prevent his escape the pirate was already circling around to his left and out of range. But Naruto couldn't let him get away that easily. Orochimaru was unlikely to let them set up for another go.

So pushing down hard on his right leg, he pivoted with all his might in an attempt to follow the man's motion. Making use of the twisting motion from his body, he drove his Shigan up from below like an uppercut … and just missed Orochimaru by a fraction of an inch, tearing into the side of his pants.

In response to his attack, Orochimaru spun around and sent Naruto hurtling back the direction he'd come with a kick before parrying an attack Tashigi attempted to make while he was distracted. Picking himself up, Naruto again replaced the destroyed clone as it immediately rejoined the fight.

His plan had been a success. Palming the key that he'd stolen from Orochimaru when he tore open his pocket, he waited a moment until the pirate's back was to him. The he tossed it back to Shino, who caught it easily with his left hand.

"I know you're limited without your power," Naruto told him loudly enough for everyone to hear. "But we're going to need whatever help you can give us. He's just too much for us."

"I'll do what I can," Shino answered.

But in his moment of distraction with Shino, Orochimaru had managed to catch Kiba with some attack he'd missed seeing, sending him violently into a wall. The back of his head hit first with a painful sounding thud and the rest of his body quickly followed suit, sprawling him flat against the wall.

"I hope he's as least as good as your friend over there," Orochimaru mocked as Kiba slid limply to the floor. "Because it looks like you're down a man."

Naruto felt a surge of anger at Kiba's treatment but fought it down. He had to stay focused. Looking back at Shino, he saw the man nod that he was ready. Turning forward again, he rushed at Orochimaru, who reciprocated by running straight at him.

But shortly before they clashed, he danced around Naruto, heading instead to Shino, who was running up from behind Naruto. The pirate then thrust his sword directly at Shino and Naruto had to give the bounty hunter a lot of credit. He waited longer than Naruto suspected he himself would have dared, before ripping open the now unlocked handcuffs and letting the sword pass right through him.

The insects his body was turning into quickly swarmed onto the sword and began moving up it toward the wielder. Having little choice, Orochimaru dropped his weapon and jumped off to the side, near where Kiba was lying unmoving.

And apparently that was by choice, as Kiba took the opportunity to bury his dagger deep into the back of Orochimaru's right calf. The pirate stumbled away from the assault, but Tashigi wasn't about to give him a moments respite, as she moved in with her own attack.

Orochimaru dodged back away from the slash but slowed by his injury wasn't able to completely avoid it and received a shallow cut along his chest. That dagger of Kiba's had sliced deeply into the leg. No matter how good the man was at dealing with pain, muscle had been damaged and his leg just wasn't going to move like it normally did.

One of Naruto's clones was the next to take advantage of that fact, sending a kick that clipped his back as he again just avoided dodging completely. The kick threw Orochimaru off balance enough, that he was completely unable to avoid a punch from Naruto, that landed solidly on his chest. Naruto was rewarded by the sensation of ribs snapping under his assault.

So it was a testament to the man's skill, that as injured as he was, he still managed to turn and make a diving roll toward the desk. Then lifting it, he tossed the whole thing at his pursuers, delaying them and allowing him to create some space.

"Your plan was to play dead while we fought and just hope that Orochimaru happened to wander past?" Tashigi accused Kiba.

"I don't see what right you have to complain seeing as it worked," Kiba argued. "I'm going to make sure the report clearly states the major role I played in his defeat. What exactly have you done? Scratched him?"

"Don't let your guard down," Naruto ordered. "I'd expect more from the only man to escape my father. I wouldn't be surprised if he still had an ace up his sleeve."

"Escaped your father?" Orochimaru asked more calmly than he would have expected given his condition. "Yes, I see the resemblance. You must be Minato's brat. That would explain why I took such an instant dislike to you."

"I'll just have to finish what my father started," Naruto replied.

"I wouldn't have thought it would be necessary," Orochimaru continued, ignoring Naruto's comment, "but given the state I find myself in, why don't I show you exactly how it was I outdid Minato. Other than simply outliving him that is."

"What exactly are you going to do beat up like that?" Kiba asked smugly.

"What I can do is show you _my_ devil fruit power," he answered.

* * *

Juugo's body quickly began to turn a dark shade of gray. Not just his skin, but his hair, eyes, even his clothes turned to one solid color. In addition, his hands and feet began to morph into claws of some sort and the already tall man grew more than a foot, topping off at about seven and a half feet.

But what was probably the most startling change, was the large pair of bat-like wings that sprouted from his back. They of course were the same shade of gray as the rest of his body. His change completed, the man, or whatever he was now, let out a loud roar.

"Juugo is the owner of a rare mythical zoan fruit," Suigetsu told her. "This is his gargoyle form."

Meanwhile, flapping his large wings, Juugo was actually lifting into the air. When he was ten feet up or so he began a dive, and Tenten finally snapped out of her trance and hurled one of the few daggers she hadn't already used at the beast.

Her aim was true, but the weapon bounced off his arm with a clank leaving him uninjured. Actually, her eye caught a small object falling from where she hit, and she ran over to where it landed on the deck to examine it.

It appeared to be a piece of stone. But did that mean his entire body was made of stone? Before she could try anything else Juugo broke into a dive, aiming toward where one of Orochimaru's men had remained behind fighting one of their crew.

His feet, which were really more like sharp talons now, each latched onto one of the men, digging into their flesh as it lifted them up into the air. Tenten saw the shimmer of air directly in its path that indicated a distortion was forming.

But Juugo made an astonishingly sharp turn to avoid it. Although Kurenai had succeeded in gaining his attention, as the creature dropped its passengers harshly to the deck and dove straight at her. It seemed that as ferocious as he was in his transformed state, he still retained at least some of his human intellect.

A quick mental calculation made it clear to Tenten that Juugo would reach Kurenai before she'd be able to form another distortion. It took her just under 5 seconds to collapse one distortion and form a second, and that was about a second too slow.

She moved to help the woman who was preparing to use her knife to defend herself. But while she struck first, her attack did little more than remove a small chip from the zoan user. Juugo however, landed on top of her, knocking her onto her back and digging his claws into her shoulders.

Tenten saw him reach back his right arm for a powerful strike while holding her pinned, and she was filled with despair. She wouldn't reach him in time to stop the strike, and that monster's attack could probably tear her head off.

When a hand grabbed the claw before it could descend, Tenten realized just how focused she'd been on Kurenai's plight. She hadn't even realized Nawaki had returned to their ship and had been moving to protect their acting captain.

After gripping Juugo's fist, he pulled him off of Kurenai and threw him onto his back. His wings prevented him from lying completely flat, but Nawaki reversed Juugo's earlier position and pinned him to ground before beating on the creature with his spiked knuckles.

His assault left pockmarked holes on Juugo's face and chest and a number of cracks near the holes. The zoan user let out a load roar, although whether in pain, rage, or both, she didn't know. Sending a clawed strike back at Nawaki, Juugo slashed across his chest, leaving a trio of thick red lines.

Then, while Juugo was off guard, he slipped his legs under the man and threw him back and over his head. Tenten was already in motion having pulled out her heaviest weapon, a mace that she kept strapped to her side. Reaching Juugo, who had just clawed his way to his feet, she slammed it into his side with all her might.

A section about the size of her first crumbled away and a number of long cracks spread along his chest and back. Some of them merged with those left by Nawaki's earlier assault. Not to be outdone, Nawaki added to his share of the damage slamming a fist into Juugo's back.

Tenten could see cracks spread further as Juugo let out another roar. But rather than retaliating, he ran directly away from them. Flapping his wings, he leaped off the ship and took flight back toward the island.

"Get back here you coward," Suigetsu ordered, although with much less force than before.

Suigetsu no longer had the strength to stand, and was now kneeling on the ground. Yet he seemed to need his sword for support to manage even that much.

Kurenai and Nawaki had both judged their wounds to not be life threatening and were approaching the pirate swordsman. With him being the only opponent who was still be conscious on their ship, the rest of their crew was seeing to the wounded.

"Not going to kill yourself to protect your master?" Nawaki asked.

"He was just a paycheck and a chance to get famous," Suigetsu answered. "Not worth giving my life over. If you patch me up I might even consider telling you whatever you want to know about him."

"Did you take care of everyone on their ship?" Tenten asked Nawaki, changing the subject. "Considering how long you took I certainly hope you did."

"Hey, there were a few tough ones over there," he answered defensively. "But yeah, they've all been dealt with."

"Great, so now that we don't need those marines anymore, what do you say we go finish them off?" Tenten asked hopefully.

"We have wounded people here," Kurenai admonished. "Including Nawaki and I. We're not going to start another fight now."

"Fine," she conceded reluctantly. "But don't think I'll be so easily swayed if we run into him again."

* * *

"I can't believe we're stuck out here while they're meeting with one of the Shichibukai," Nojiko complained to Akamaru. "This will be a great a story to tell Nami. 'I got a glimpse of him from the ship before my companions left me behind and went inside.'"

She'd hoped she'd at least get some excitement from the clash of the pirates. But they'd both just anchored right in front of each other off in the distance. And they were too far off to make out what was going on even through a telescope.

But Akamaru must have grown tired of her monologue, as his response was to tackle her to the ground. She was just about to yell at the dog for his reaction when she saw a gigantic set of grey talons pass right through where she'd been standing.

And when she got a look at the whole creature she didn't have a clue what that monster could be. Although even in her shock, she idly noticed that it seemed to be in pretty bad condition There was a large hole in its side and cracks all along its body. The creature looked to be turning around for another pass, but Nojiko wasn't about to just let it do as it pleased.

Pulling out her gun, she fire a number of shots into the creature which was now hovering just off the starboard side of the ship about ten feet above the deck. The bullets buried themselves into the creature, but no blood came from the wounds. Although a few small pieces of it appeared to break off.

Drawn by the sound of gunfire, Naruto's clones rushed out of the galley to see what was going on. Whatever that thing was, it seemed to reconsider a second attack as it turned around and flew off into the woods on the island.

"What was that?" one of Naruto's clones asked.

"I don't know," Nojiko answered. "But remind me to not to complain anymore that staying behind on the ship is boring."

* * *

Shino watched Orochimaru cautiously. His claim to have a devil fruit power could just be a ploy to stall them in hopes that help would arrive. But there was a much greater risk should they act rashly and he truly did have a special ability.

They could try to attack him before he got a chance to use his power. But given that Orochimaru announced he was going to show it to them, rather than simply using it, that may be exactly what he wanted them to do. Yes, waiting for him to make his move was the best course of action for now.

However, he did not expect the man's move to be slumping to the ground. Had he been more wounded than they'd realized, or was this some sort of trap? His companions looked as confused as he was. Except Kiba, who was, oddly enough, smiling broadly. His odd behavior didn't stop there, as his lifted his dagger up and held it against his own neck.

"Nobody move or your friend dies," Kiba ordered, although Shino was pretty certain now that it was no longer Kiba in control.

"This better not be a joke, Kiba," Naruto said angrily, but made no move.

"I assure you, this is quite serious," Kiba's body answered. "I'm in complete control of your friend. Now, the annoying one with the bugs, I want you to put those cuffs of yours back on."

There were many questions about Orochimaru's power. How often could he switch bodies? What happens to the person who was displaced? Would killing the host kill Orochimaru? But one thing was certain, putting those handcuffs on would only make the situation worse.

"You're just planning to kill us all anyway," Shino told him. "Why should we make it easier for you to do so?"

"Because it's actually better for me if you return alive," Orochimaru answered. "It would be difficult to explain how a group sent to investigate me just happened to disappear. Especially if the marines have any spies in my organization that saw you arrive."

"Then why did you wait until now to try this approach?" Shino asked dubiously.

"It was too great a risk," he replied. "My power is my most valuable secret. I don't even let my own men know about it. There was always the chance you'd be the type who were willing to sacrifice a friend for the greater good. Or the type who only cared about themselves for that matter."

"You mean someone like you," Tashigi interjected.

"Exactly," Orochimaru answered, unaffected by the intended insult Tashigi's statement had carried. "But if you would all put your lives in my hand in the hopes I'll let you're friend live, you'll probably be cooperative in keeping my secret. Because you can consider the lives of every friend and family member you have forfeit should news of my ability leak."

Tashigi gasped in response to his threat which only led Orochimaru to put Kiba's face into an even more twisted grin.

"And it would be useless to try to protect them," he added. "Because absolutely anyone they came across could be under my control. So I'm sure you'll make the right decision, just like Minato did."

Orochimaru paused as if deep in thought.

"Come to think of it," he addressed Naruto. "I may very well have you to thank for your father doing such a fine job of staying silent. But that's enough talking, you're running out of time to do as I say. In addition to the handcuffs, I want those fakes of yours gone. Oh, and I want the sword girl to toss aside that little toy sword of hers."

But Shino still had no intention of complying. He didn't trust the man to keep his word. There was some logic in what he was saying, but Orochimaru would probably be better served leaving only one of them alive. That one could return with some story of the rest continuing the investigation.

After all, why would the man share the knowledge with a single person more than necessary. He would just pick whoever he thought was least likely to divulge what really happened.

"Do it," Naruto told him, snapping him out of his thoughts.

For his part, he dismissed his clones. Tashigi was going along with this as well having tossed her sword aside.

"I'm still not certain that's wise," Shino argued.

"Just do it," Naruto said more forcefully.

Shino considered his options once more. Naruto was quite insistent, but he didn't know the young marine well enough to ascertain if it was because he had a plan. He could simply be determined not to let Kiba be killed. Shino did not like gambling everything when their were so many uncertainties.

On the other hand, given how little they knew about the limitations of Orochimaru's power, he couldn't see a course of action that was any less a risk. As difficult as the decision was, it only took him a couple of seconds to make, as he knew that too much inaction would take the choice from him.

He would trust Naruto had a plan. At the very least, if he didn't, it was clear Shino would not be the one chosen to live. So there would be little opportunity for regret. Picking up the handcuffs he'd discarded, he clamped it around his right wrist. Taking the key he'd kept on his person, he locked it before repeating the process with his other hand and tossing the key away.

"Now, I have another set on the desk in the next room to the left," Orochimaru told them. "I want the girl to go and bring it back. But don't take too long or things could get ugly."

Tashigi quickly complied and left the room. However, a foot caught the door before it shut behind her, and Tashigi marched right back in.

"What do you think you're doing?" Orochimaru demanded. "I want to remind you that I'm in control here."

Without even slowing, she walked right across the room, picked up her sword along the way, and stood over Orochimaru's body pointing it at his neck.

"It occurs to me," she said as she looked down on the motionless form, "your body must have eaten the devil fruit. So what happens to you if it dies?"

"Do it!" Shino ordered her.

He didn't know why Orochimaru had let her put his body in that position, but this was their best chance. She was right that killing the body should remove his ability. So the worst case scenario would be that Orochimaru would be stuck in Kiba's body.

"Are you really willing to risk your friends life over this?" Orochimaru asked.

"Are you willing to risk your own?" she fired back, turning to see his response.

Suddenly both Kiba's and Tashigi's bodies jerked. Then, while Kiba lowered the dagger at his neck, Tashigi moved her sword up and in front of her own. Shino resisted the urge to curse. She should have ended it when she had the chance. But why had Orochimaru waited so long to switch bodies when his own was at risk?

Perhaps the process took time. Also, he believed Tashigi had never actually turned to face Orochimaru until right before the switch. Maybe eye contact was the key. If either of those were true, they still had a chance.

"You see how useless this is?" Orochimaru asked from Tashigi's body. "You have no hope of winning."

"You'll pay for this somehow," Kiba vowed.

At the very least it was good to know that the host recovered when Orochimaru left the body. But they were all caught of guard when a moment later the door opened and Tashigi walked in carrying another set of handcuffs.

"I have the ..." her words trailed off when she saw what appeared to be herself standing inside.

The faces of the two Tashigis almost mirrored each other in shock as each looked at the other. But only for a moment as the one Orochimaru had possessed vanished in a puff of smoke. Immediately, Naruto dashed over to where Tashigi stood, and grabbed the cuffs and key out of her hands.

Sprinting back to Orochimaru, he quickly closed them around his wrists and locked them shut. Meanwhile, Shino was hurrying over to where he'd tossed the key to his own handcuffs where he used it to release himself once more.

Having done so, he wasted no time approaching the fallen Shichibukai and picking up the sword the fake Tashigi had dropped upon vanishing.

"I'm going to kill him," he announced. "There's still a chance that he could have taken one of us over and this is the only way to be certain. It's just too risky to leave him alive."

Naruto didn't look very pleased from where he stood a couple feet away, but the marine made no effort to stop his plan. So he slowly lifted the sword up, held it there for a moment, and then slammed it straight down piercing into the floor an inch away from Orochimaru's neck.

"Good," he declared. "Since none of you attempted to stop me, I can assume that you are all who you appear to be."

With that matter settled, Shino transformed his body, and quickly injected Orochimaru with the paralyzing agent his other form granted him.

"How do we know he didn't take over your body?" Kiba asked as he returned to his human form.

"I suppose you can't be certain," Shino admitted. "But I find it unlikely that he would be capable of using my power so effectively only moments after possessing me."

"And it wouldn't make much sense for him to point out that he might be in control of one of us," Naruto added. "Not when we may just decide to kill him to be safe."

Tashigi, for her part, was already standing over Kusanagi with a look of awe. She reached down as if almost afraid to actually touch it before gently lifting it off the ground.

"It's my goal to take all the named blades from those who use them for selfish ends," she stated. "But ... Kusanagi ... from Orochimaru ... it doesn't seem real."

Ignoring her antics, Shino turned to Naruto.

"I want to apologize," Shino told him. "I had a great deal of doubt that you truly had a plan when you ordered me to put on the handcuffs."

"Actually, I didn't have a plan yet," Naruto admitted sheepishly. "I was determined to think of something but I was just trying to buy some time. I still didn't have anything until he told Tashigi to go get that other set of handcuffs. Good thing he didn't just handcuff us together, huh?"

Shino was somewhat ... irritated by his disclosure. But he'd let it pass considering Naruto had come through in the end.

"Anyway, we should get out of here as quickly as possible." Naruto declared to all of them. "We don't know if or when his men might be back, and we need to make sure Nojiko and Akamaru are okay."

He was right, this wasn't yet the time for discussion. Grabbing the unmoving Orochimaru, Shino hurried out the door after Naruto.

* * *

Naruto had sent his two clones back to the room he'd broken into earlier. He wanted to gather up the documents he'd discovered in the process. As for he and his crew, their exit proved to be a pretty simple matter. They'd left behind one unconscious pirate, but he'd hardly been worth mentioning.

Still, he would have liked to bring him with. But considering just who they were going to be transporting, he didn't want any unnecessary risk of escape. They made it back to the ship to see Nojiko staring at them as they ran up.

"Is that Orochimaru?" she asked in disbelief when they'd boarded the ship.

Naruto's clones came out of the galley to see what was going on. Then one of them dismissed itself giving him a quick view of what had occurred while they were inside the manor.

"Yes," he answered. "And I see you had some excitement as well. We'll explain once we're safely away from here."

In the distance he could see his clones running up to the ship, so without delay he began the process of shoving off. The boat was already beginning to inch away from the dock when they jumped on board, carrying arms full of folders.

"Just so you know, Kurenai's ship sailed off a short while ago, leaving Orochimaru's on fire," Nojiko told him.

"Let's just hope they don't set another trap for us," he replied.

Naruto didn't really begin to relax until the island was completely out of sight.

"You promised me you'd explain what was going on," Nojiko reminded him.

"I can help you out with that," Kiba said. "Naruto found proof that Orochimaru was up to no good. But he got caught so Orochimaru attacked us. Then, thanks to my brilliant trick, we were able to defeat him. So we brought him back with us to the ship, end of story."

Nojiko looked to Naruto for confirmation of the story.

"His summary isn't actually as far off as you might think," Naruto admitted. "Although he did neglect to go into the details dealing with the end of the fight."

"We're not supposed to talk about that," Kiba replied nervously.

"He's not exactly in any condition to carry out his threat," Naruto pointed out.

"Yeah, but what if he escapes?" Kiba fired back. "If he's safely captured there's no reason to tell anyone about it anyway. And if he does escape, I don't want to risk my family over it."

"There's little point in you hiding his body stealing ability," Shino told him. "Whatever you decide, I have no intention of holding my tongue. And if he does escape, I believe he has plenty of reason to hold a grudge against us already."

"He's right, Kiba," Naruto told his friend. "And we can't go about living our lives in fear of his escape. I'm going to include his ability in my report. And speaking of which, I should call back to the base now."

Going into the dining room, he picked up the receiver of the den den mushi and sent the call to G-5.

"G-5 Base," a man's voice answered. "How can I help you?"

"This is Lieutenant Namikaze Naruto," he answered. "I'm calling to report the status of my mission to Rear Admiral Kakashi."

"Naruto you say?" he asked. "Hold on one moment, the admiral wanted me to let him know the moment we heard from you."

To his surprise, Kakashi himself actually got on the line less than a minute from when he was put on hold.

"Naruto, is that you?" he asked. "What's going on? I was expecting to hear from you days ago."

"We actually had some trouble with another group of pirates on the way," Naruto answered. "I'll give the details in my report, but there are more important things to discuss."

"Yes, how did your mission go?" Kakashi asked.

"The bad news is we failed the part of our mission where we were supposed to keep our findings a secret from Orochimaru," he replied.

"Did you all make it out okay?" Kakashi queried worriedly. "Are you in need of any medical assistance?"

"We're all fine," Naruto answered. "Which brings me to the good news. We've captured Orochimaru and we're bringing him back with us."

"Excuse me?" he asked. "This den den mushi must be sick again. I thought I heard you say you'd captured Orochimaru. I'm sure you actually said you evaded Orochimaru or you captured his cook, or something like that, right?"

"No, you heard correctly," Naruto replied proudly. "We captured Orochimaru and we're bringing him back with us."

"I get it," Kakashi said. "You're getting back at me for not calling you back last time. You're actually waiting outside the base having a laugh at my expense. Well, I probably deserve that, but I'm still going to dock your pay for it."

Naruto was actually starting to get a little annoyed by his disbelief, even if he understood logically how difficult this would be to swallow.

"I'm quite serious," Naruto said a bit tersely. "We did manage to get him alone thanks to a distraction, which I'll cover in my report. If you still don't believe me you can wait until we get back and prove it to you. But before that I'd like to tell you what we discovered about his plans."

"Go ahead," he said simply, calming Naruto a bit when he didn't challenge him further.

"Orochimaru had been collecting information on high ranking government, civilian, and marine figures," he began. "Mostly related to conflicts between any such people. He has a lot of very detailed and obscure information on them so he must have had quite the spy network."

"I see," Kakashi muttered. "I have a few ideas what he'd do with that and I'm afraid I don't like any of them."

"I had the same reaction," Naruto agreed. "And it becomes even worse once you learn what his devil fruit power is."

"So he was hiding an ability," Kakashi said thoughtfully.

"Yes, he can take over the body of another individual," he informed the rear admiral. "We don't know much about the limitations as we only got to see him use it twice. The second time being when I tricked him into taking over a clone, then poof."

"Yes, with that power, combined with the intelligence he gathered, it would be trivial to start conflict," Kakashi stated. "A king's daughter is murdered by another monarch whom he already loathes in front of the eyes of countless witnesses? No one would be able to be able to stop that war."

"As for Orochimaru, he hasn't woken up since," Naruto added. "So for all we know his consciousness was lost in the process."

"Well, I'm looking forward to reading the full report," Kakashi told him. "But this is something I'm going to need to tell my superiors about as soon as possible. So just get back here without delay and I'll talk to you then."

"Understood," Naruto replied, before hearing the connection go dead.

"You know, I still can't figure out what those kidnappings had to do with anything," Naruto said mostly to himself.

But Shino decided to answer him anyway.

"I believe I have an idea in that regard," he told Naruto. "I noticed when I was carrying him back to the ship that Orochimaru's body was unusually cold. In addition, his breathing and heart beat were far slower than they should be. At first I'd assumed he was dying, but he has remained stable since then."

"Interesting," Naruto replied. "Go on."

"I believe he is in some sort of state of hibernation," he told them. "He is probably capable of going much longer without food and water like this. Now it may simply be a side effect of his power, but there is a second possibility."

"Kabuto could have figured out how to make his body do that after testing it on people they kidnapped," Naruto responded, realizing where he was going.

"Exactly," Shino confirmed. "One weakness to his ability is the constant need to return to his own body just to keep it alive. Given that he is watched very closely by the government, it might look suspicious if he were always within a day or two of travel of wherever one of the incidents he was causing occurred."

Yes, it all made sense now. Everything tied together.

"Furthermore, even if it is another part of his power, he may simply have wished to enhance it," Shino continued. "If he could slow his metabolism enough, it might even all but stop his aging. If he could hide his body away for months or years at a time, it might be the closest thing to immortality the world has ever seen."

Maybe he couldn't achieve immortality. But the thought of Orochimaru being around even one or two hundred years from now causing trouble in whatever body he'd most recently stolen was terrifying enough. So much so, that Naruto was tempted to put an end to the man right then just to be safe. But no, he wasn't about to kill an unconscious prisoner in cold blood.

* * *

"So, I guess you'll be leaving us now," Naruto told Shino as they watched G-5 grow closer. "I'll make sure we find a new ship for you."

"Actually, I think it might be in both our best interests if we refrained from parting ways just yet," Shino replied.

"Well, I'm not at all opposed to the idea," Naruto responded honestly, "but I am curious as to your reasons."

"To put it simply neither us would have been capable of capturing Orochimaru on our own," he answered.

"True enough," Naruto agreed, seeing as it had been a close call even together.

"Yet capturing this one man has probably done more good than the incarceration of every criminal I've apprehended in the past combined," Shino continued. "So I think it best we continue our cooperative efforts as doing so would allow us to pursue more dangerous opponents than we could on our own."

"I'd be happy to have you aboard as long as you want to stay," Naruto assured him.

"Thank you," he answered simply.

They were now close enough for Naruto to see about two dozen armed marines hurrying to the dock they were headed for. Almost as soon as their ship had come to a stop, they'd rushed on board.

"We're here to secure the prisoner," the lead one announced nervously.

Actually saying he looked nervous was probably an understatement, he looked barely a step below panic. Which was completely unnecessary given that the man they were coming to take custody of hadn't shown any signs of consciousness since his capture. Not the mention the fact that he was chained up quite tightly just in case.

Naruto almost laughed at the reaction when they actually brought the man up from below deck. Half of the men had pulled their guns out and were now pointing them at Orochimaru as if expecting him to charge them at any moment.

Never mind that he could hardly bend a joint in his body with all the chains wrapped around him. Still they reluctantly accepted the prisoner and all but two of the men hurried off. Naruto quickly recognized the shorter of their two remaining visitors, but it was the other man who approached him.

"Do you have your full report written?" he asked. "I have orders from the rear admiral to get it to him as soon as possible."

"Yes, I have it right here," Naruto answered handing him the small stack of papers.

"Good," the man replied. "Karl here will show you to your quarters. You're to stay there until fetched in case they want any further information from you."

With that the taller marine left leaving them with Karl.

"Right this way," Karl told them and began leading them off the ship.

He walked in silence for a while only occasionally looking back as if to check if they were still following. They passed through the same large building they'd entered the first time they'd arrived and entered a long corridor.

"I'm sorry about before," he finally said. "I had no idea you were so strong. And I mean Admiral Minato's son and everything. I guess it just runs in your blood."

"Hey, I played a big role in capturing Orochimaru too," Kiba insisted.

"Oh, I'm sure you're all plenty strong," he said placatingly. "You'd have to be to not be killed in an instant when facing Orochimaru."

Naruto actually found it a little odd to be treated with such awe. But not at all in a bad way, as he certainly felt he could get used to it. But they walked on a little further before coming to a hallway that led to a dead end.

"Anyway, we're here," Karl said. "All of these rooms are currently empty. Just pick one and someone will be by soon enough to get you."

They all split up and took rooms, Akamaru following Kiba into his of course. The one Naruto chose was a small room containing nothing more than a bed with a small stand next to it. His cabin on the ship was larger than this. Not much he could do in here while he waited.

Still, there was enough room to practice his Geppou a bit, considering how far he still had to go. He was getting to the point where sometimes he could get enough resistance to give his body a little push, but he was hardly going to be bouncing around the room.

It was actually more than two hours he had to train before someone did come to get them, although it wasn't anyone he recognized this time. His entire crew gathered together and followed the man back through the building until they came to the main entrance, where Kakashi was already waiting for them.

"Ah, there you guys are," he told them. "I just got done talking with my higher ups and they're not at all happy."

"What's the problem?" Naruto asked nervously.

Yes, Naruto had been ordered to avoid combat, but he'd attempted to do so. And wasn't capturing Orochimaru something worthy of praise rather than recriminations?

"Well it's just that now two of the Shichibukai have fallen so close together," he told them.

"Two?" Tashigi asked curiously. "Who was the other?"

"I'm glad you're the one who asked," Kakashi answered. "Because your old boss, Smoker went and captured Crocodile for stirring up trouble in Arabasta."

Naruto saw Nojiko grip her hands together tightly and knew she made the same connection he just had.

"Were there any other pirates caught in the area?" she asked suddenly.

"As a matter fact there were a bunch of high profile pirates we took in," Kakashi answered. "Let's see, there was Daz Bones and Bon Kurei to start with."

Nojiko continued to watch him intently as he seemed to be trying to dredge through his memories.

"Oh, and the Straw Hat Pirates," he said suddenly, causing Nojiko to draw in a breath. "They got away."

Nojiko immediately let out a sigh of relief.

"Yeah, I know," Kakashi added. "It's a shame to see them slip through our fingers. But I hear they're raising the bounties. 100 million for the captain and 60 million for Zoro. Even if we don't catch them I'm sure some bounty hunter is bound to with that much money on their heads."

Nojiko understandably looked quite uncomfortable with the notion. Meanwhile, Naruto saw Shino looking curiously at Nojiko's reaction and realized the bounty hunter didn't know about their history with that particular crew of pirates.

"Anyway," Kakashi continued, "back to the point at hand. The top brass are all worried about losing two members and upsetting the balance of power and all that. But those kind of things are above even my pay grade."

"So are we in trouble?" Tashigi finally asked voicing the concern they all had.

"Not at all, what would give you that idea?" Kakashi asked. "They know you didn't have anything to do with Orochimaru's treachery. They're actually highly impressed with your work capturing him. In fact, there's promotions all around."

"Promotions?" Kiba asked, perking up immediately at the prospect.

"Yeah, let me see if I can get this right. Lieutenant, Lieutenant, Lieutenant Commander," he said pointing at Kiba, Tashigi, and then Naruto himself. "And Tashigi's old boss gets made a Commodore. Or it all went something like that anyway."

"Something like that?" Kiba asked incredulously. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Eh, don't sweat the small details," Kakashi advised him. "It only creates too much stress."

"How exactly is knowing our own rank a small detail?" Kiba fired back angrily.

"If you're that concerned go ask Mary later," he told Kiba. "She's printing up your new Ids. But before that I have your next mission lined up for you."

"I'm listening," Naruto told him.

"Well," Kakashi began, "how would you like to clean up a nest of pirates in a place called Mock Town?"

* * *

**Naruto's Clone Adventures**

Naruto looked around at all the fallen pirates and still almost couldn't believe it. None of them had been very strong, but really all it would have taken was a scratch from one knife or getting clipped by one bullet and he would have been gone.

And on top of that he'd found himself unable to move as fast as he'd expected. He just didn't seem able to use Soru quite as well as a clone. The two thugs Ino had sent with him hadn't been much help. In fact having to protect them probably made things harder overall.

On the other hand, he wouldn't have been able to make it through without Shikamaru. Mostly the young merchant did his best to stay out of the way and avoid the combat. Only three times did he actually do much of anything, firing one shot from his gun each time.

But the amazing thing was, that each one came at a critical point where Naruto didn't think he'd have been able to get away unscathed otherwise. Shikamaru seemed to have a very good eye for telling exactly when he was about to be overwhelmed.

"Whatever she's paying you, I'll pay you double if you get me out here," Gato called out to him.

"She's not even paying me, I'm doing this because I'm a marine," Naruto replied.

"Then I'll pay you more than you'd make in ten years of working," Gato amended.

"Can you gag him or something?" Naruto asked the man holding him captive, as his attempts to buy him were getting on his nerves.

Naruto heard footsteps behind him and turned to see Ino approaching as her ship had already pulled back into dock.

"Good work," she told him. "Now I assume you'll be staying with me for a while."

"Then you assume wrong," Naruto told her. "Why would you think that in the first place?"

"I just thought you'd want to guard Gato and his men so I could take the nearest marine base," she replied. "I wouldn't dare take them all on my own. But if you're busy, I suppose we could just let them all go."

He ground his teeth at that, almost hoping it would be enough to destroy himself. But maybe there was still some way out of this.

"Shikamaru?" he asked hopefully.

"Welcome aboard," was the only the reply he got as the young man patted him on the back and lazily walked over to the ship.

"We are going straight to the nearest base, right?" he asked her.

"Of course," she assured him. "There might be a quick stop or two first, but don't worry, they're more or less right along the way."

Naruto still couldn't believe this. How could any one person be so infuriating?

"Oh, and hurry and gather up the captives," she ordered him. "I expect to be ready to leave in five minutes. And just to make things clear, I'll be collecting any bounties on these men, seeing as we're using my ship to transport them."

Naruto had been wrong all along. Clones could get headaches.

* * *

**AN**

Finally finished up the arc and gave you a monster of chapter by my standards. Didn't think I'd be breaking my record again so soon. Actually, I originally expected this to be a relatively short chapter, it's the next one I was worried would get really long.

Anyway, I'll admit myself I kind of wished I could have had a little more impact in the climax for the arc. Not that I'm terribly disappointed in how it turned out, I think I did a pretty job. I just would have liked to do even better. But this chapter sets up a lot of things I have planned in the future that I'm simply not willing to change.

So there were a number of things that just had to happen in a certain way, which kind of limited my options. Within the boundaries I had, I couldn't think of much else to add drama other than gratuitously maiming or killing a character. And I only do that stuff for a good reason, such as thinking it would be funny, never gratuitously.

But the next chapter is finally one of the two big chapters I've been looking forward to writing more than any others since starting this story. Maybe that means I'll get it out quickly because I've been wanting to write it so badly. On the other hand I might take extra long wanting to get it just right. Either way I can almost guarantee it will be my best chapter yet according to my own personal tastes.

Last but not least, read and review. I completed my first big arc. Don't I deserve a review for that? Well at the very least I can reward myself with a slightly stale cookie from my own cupboard. And you can't deny me that!


	11. Chapter 11

Naruto leaned back in the dining room chair, looking out at the otherwise empty room. They were well on their way to Jaya, and Naruto was taking a brief break from training to reflect on their orders. Despite what Kakashi had initially said about clearing Mock Town of pirates, their mission was primarily reconnaissance.

They were only supposed to deal with the pirates themselves only if they were certain they could handle it. Otherwise, they were to report back to Kakashi who would mobilize an appropriate strike force. Naruto agreed with him about being at least a little cautious, but he was hopeful they could handle this without backup.

Still, there was one aspect of the mission he'd discovered that had him a little worried. When he was doing research on Jaya, he'd discovered it was on the same path through the Grand Line as Arabasta, lying only a short distance beyond it. Meaning there was a real chance they could run into the Straw Hat Pirates again.

Considering the first mission Kakashi had sent them on had also put them along the same path as Nojiko's sister, he was beginning to wonder if this was no simple coincidence. Was Kakashi deliberately using them to try and capture Luffy without telling them?

But why wouldn't he tell them unless he knew who Nojiko's sister was? And why would he send Naruto after them at all if he did know that? Maybe he was overthinking this. Perhaps it was just coincidence.

Anyway, it was starting to get late, having already passed the time when Tashigi would usually come to him for training. But he had a feeling he knew what she was currently up to. Walking out onto the deck he confirmed his suspicions as he found her in the middle of practicing swings with Kusanagi.

"Loose track of time again?" Naruto asked her, causing her to jump in surprise.

"Ah, Naruto," she replied. "I'm sorry, I didn't realize it had gotten so late. Kusanagi is just so amazing. When I swing it, it almost feels like it has a will of its own."

"I know," Naruto told her. "We went over this the other times you forgot about our training sessions."

"Ah, yeah," she admitted. "Sorry about that."

"It's fine," he told her, as a couple of his clones came up carrying their wooden training swords. "But if you think you can stand to put down Kusanagi for a little while, I'm ready to go."

"Of course," she answered, sheathing her blade and taking the wooden sword his clone was offering.

Naruto wasted little time, charging in almost the moment she'd taken her stance. But she parried his blow and quickly moved on to do the same to the attacks his two clones were attempting. She really had made impressive strides since they'd started this training. He wasn't yet going at full speed, but it wasn't long ago when that combo would have left her sporting a couple of bruises.

However, she wasn't the only one who had been improving, and he had something he wanted to show off tonight. Nodding to one of his clones, he watched it move and and deliberately overextend a swing. Tashigi dodged the wooden sword before immediately sending a counterattack its way. The clone, for its part, simply stood there waiting for the impact.

The training sword impacted solidly on the clone's side, but rather than disappearing it a puff of smoke, it just took the blow and stood there. Tashigi was obviously not expecting this result, and he used the combination of her surprise and loss of rhythm to move in himself and knock her wooden sword out of her hands.

"Heh, can't even keep track of which one is the real Naruto," Nojiko asked, making him aware of the fact that they had an audience tonight.

He saw she was leaning against the frame of the door to the dining room. But now that she'd revealed herself, she stood up and approached them.

"I didn't lose track; I was tricked" Tashigi insisted before turning to the clone that had just stopped her blade. "You had a clone approach me to start with and I just assumed it was the real you."

"I didn't trick you," Naruto answered, making her turn in confusion at the fact that the clone she had been talking to wasn't the one to respond. "That really was a clone."

He dismissed it to prove his point, to the surprise of both girls.

"How did you do that?" Nojiko asked.

"Simple. It was Tekkai," he informed her.

"Since when can your clones use Tekkai?" Tashigi inquired.

"For quite some time," he responded. "They were just really lousy at it until I decided to whip them into shape."

And they really had improved significantly. Their Tekkai wasn't nearly as strong as his yet, but they were a lot less fragile than they used to be. He could start training them on Shigan soon. Although, now that he thought about it, there was no reason he needed to teach his clones the Rokushiki in the same order he learned them himself.

"Well, it certainly makes fighting you more challenging," Tashigi declared, interrupting his thoughts. "When I attack a clone I won't know if my strike will slice clean through or come to a jarring halt."

"I've been improving my own Tekkai too," Naruto boasted. "I'm getting faster and faster at switching between movement and Tekkai."

"You've already defeated one of the Shichibukai and you're still getting stronger," Nojiko said. "You really are something else. I just wish we had marines like you to come to our rescue back when Arlong was oppressing our village."

"That's because too many talented individuals choose to become pirates and not enough join the marines," Tashigi lectured. "We simply don't have enough resources to protect everyone at all times."

"I'd like to point out that it was the Straw Hat Pirates that defeated Arlong and freed Cocoyashi Village," Nojiko countered.

"They could have done far more good with the support of the Marine Force behind them," Tashigi argued. "Not to mention the resources that have been spent trying to capture them that could have been better used elsewhere."

"Maybe we should avoid getting into this particular discussion," Naruto interjected, trying to calm them down.

But the two young women gave no sign of even hearing his words.

"It's not their fault if the marines are wasting their time trying to catch good people instead of the real villains," Nojiko fired back, her end of the 'discussion' becoming noticeably louder. "And I thought you said you were going to give me a chance. Yet here you are still jumping down my throat at every opportunity."

"I said I'd give you a chance," Tashigi shouted back, not to be outdone as far as volume was concerned. "I never said anything about giving your pirate friends a chance. I think you're actually a valuable member of the crew. But that doesn't change the fact that criminals are criminals, even if one of them is your sister."

"That's enough!" Naruto cried out at pretty near the top of his voice. "This discussion is officially over!"

Both of them looked shocked by the force of statement, but Naruto didn't back down. Instead he fixed them with a hard stare to show them just how serious he was. A silence formed that began to drag on as the three of them stood there, as if each waiting for someone else to make the first move. It was Nojiko who finally did so.

"Well then, I'm going to get some sleep," she said coolly. "You two can get back to your training."

"I'll see you tomorrow then," Naruto replied.

Tashigi, however, didn't acknowledge her statement and remained silent as Nojiko walked off and took the stairs below deck. The two of them had actually seemed to be getting along reasonably well lately, but apparently they hadn't worked through their issues yet.

Maybe it would have been better to just let them work it out themselves. He'd prefer it if they weren't constantly at each other's throats. But the last thing he wanted was get himself stuck in the middle of their fighting. He just hoped it wouldn't come to that.

* * *

Their timing for arriving in Mock Town was pretty much ideal. With it being early afternoon there would be plenty of time for them to run some reconnaissance while whatever lowlifes were currently residing in the town were up and about.

He saw his clone up in the crow's nest signaled down to where he was manning the helm that there was no sign of Luffy's ship. Although he wasn't quite certain whether or not that was a good thing. Kiba, who was standing next to him, didn't seem to find anything amiss if he'd even noticed the exchange. He hadn't yet let anyone else in on the fact that there was a chance of another encounter with them.

"I'm going to need you and Akamaru to stay and guard the ship," he told his friend. "Tell Akamaru I'm sorry about leaving him behind again, but we're trying to avoid drawing attention to ourselves."

"Don't worry about it," Kiba replied. "All you're going to be doing is looking around. Just make sure you come and get us before we start the fighting."

"Well then," Naruto responded, "why don't you take the helm while I go round up the rest of the crew?"

Although it looked like Tashigi was already on deck and prepared to depart. And Shino was coming up the stairs just now as if summoned. So it looked like Nojiko would be the only one he needed to find.

"You didn't happen to see Nojiko below deck, did you?" Naruto asked Shino.

"She's in the galley," he answered helpfully.

Naruto thanked him, but had to wonder how the young man even knew that. Hadn't he just come up from below deck? Anyway, that was a question for another time. Taking Shino at his word, Naruto entered through the doorway to the dining room and continued on to the galley behind it. Sure enough, there was Nojiko, busily washing dishes from lunch.

"You should have just let one of my clones handle that," Naruto told her. "You cooked the meal so it isn't right to make you clean up as well."

"You already do the majority of the chores around here between you and your clones," she pointed out. "And since you remember everything they've done, that must get pretty tedious. Although I'd admit, I wouldn't mind it if Tashigi did more to pull her her weight."

There hadn't been any further incidents between the two female members of his crew, but Naruto hadn't exactly seen them engaged in a friendly chat since.

"To be fair, you did ban her from ever doing the dishes again," Naruto replied.

"We wouldn't have any unbroken dishes left if I hadn't," Nojiko fired back. "But she could still help out in other ways."

He briefly considered leaving Nojiko behind as well. Or perhaps he should go the other direction and tell her about the Straw Hat Pirates' projected path. But seeing as their ship didn't seem to be here, he'd just continue on as if he knew nothing for now.

"Anyway, you'll have to finish this up later," he told her. "We're about to dock and I'd like you to come with this time."

"Of course," she replied, quickly drying her hands on a towel. "I'll be right out."

Nodding, Naruto went back out on the deck with Nojiko following behind him. Everyone else he meant to bring was already gathered and ready to depart. And now that they were almost into the port, Naruto was able to confirm with his own eyes that there was no sign of Luffy's ship. There was, however, plenty of other pirate ships to go around.

"I want everyone to stick together for this," Naruto ordered. "Even if they don't discover we're with the marines, these are pirates we're dealing with. There's no telling what they might do."

"I suggest our first destination be a bar of some sort," Shino declared. "We may overhear some valuable intelligence there. We'll also be less likely to draw suspicion if we make inquiries of our own."

"Sounds like a plan," Naruto agreed.

The four of them departed the ship and slowly made their way through the town until they came to a bar. Naruto had been keeping an eye out for faces he might recognize from a wanted poster, but hadn't seen any yet.

They entered the bar to find it sparsely populated. There was a small group sitting at a table as well as a lone man at a stool by the bar. The solitary figure was easily the largest person in the room, a man with scraggly black hair that went down to about his shoulders.

He was able to catch a glimpse of a profile view of the man's head but the image didn't seem at all familiar. For the group at the table, however, he was sure he'd seen the darkly tanned man with the blond hair, but he couldn't quite place him.

"That's Bellamy," Shino whispered to him, providing the answer he'd been searching his memories for. "He has a 55 million beri bounty."

Not wanting to stand by the door long enough to seem suspicious, Naruto selected a table somewhat near the group and sat down. His crew joined him, and a barmaid quickly approached them to take their orders.

"What do you say we go mess with those Saruyama fools again?" he overheard Bellamy asking. "I need to let off some steam."

"Are you sure that's a wise idea?" the lone man at the bar interjected. "I hear you got yourself beaten quite soundly in retaliation for what you did to them."

"Shut your mouth, fool," Bellamy ordered crossly. "My boss, Doflamingo is going to take care of that idiot pirate."

"So you're one of Doflamingo's lackeys?" the large man queried.

"Call me a lackey if you will," Bellamy answered. "But I know there's nothing shameful about working for a man who's going somewhere. In fact, I have it on good authority he's going to fill the recent vacancy in the Shichibukai."

"You know, I kind of have my heart set on that particular title myself," Bellamy's conversation partner informed him.

That man wanted to be a member of the Shichibukai? Who exactly was he? Naruto looked at Shino questioningly, hoping he would know. But the bounty hunter just shook his head in response.

"You want to be one of the Shichibukai?" Bellamy asked, letting out a laugh. "Who exactly do you think you are? That was a joke right?"

"Call me Blackbeard," he replied. "And I'm completely serious."

"I've never even heard of you," Bellamy responded derisively. "Doflamingo is a man with a 450 million beri bounty. The only reason he wasn't given the position in the past was that they didn't think they could control him. What makes you think they'd pick you over him?"

"I admit I'm not very well known yet," Blackbeard replied. "Although I'm working on doing something about that now. And Doflamingo probably will get the first opening if he wants it. So I guess it's just lucky for me that there are two."

"Two?" Bellamy parroted. "Where did you hear that? This is the first time one of the Shichibukai has ever fallen. What do you think are the odds of it happening a second time so soon after the first? Either you're pulling my leg or someone else already pulled yours."

"You'll learn the truth soon enough," Blackbeard told him. "But if your boss expects to do anything to the Straw Hat Pirates, I hope he has some way to get to Sky Island."

Naruto saw Nojiko tense beside him. It looked like Luffy and his crew may have been here after all but already left. But where was Sky Island? Naruto had never heard of the place except in fairy tales. And surely the man couldn't mean that Sky Island, could he?

"Huh?" was all Bellamy could say in response, looking as confused as Naruto felt.

"He's up in Sky Island now," Blackbeard clarified. "I saw his ship take a knockup stream myself."

"Well, I would have liked to see him suffer, but I guess dead is dead," Bellamy declared, letting out a loud laugh. "There's no way he'd have survived the fall."

Naruto could see that Nojiko was not taking this news calmly and set a hand on her shoulder, hoping it would serve as a reminder that they didn't want to make a scene. His hopes of remaining inconspicuous, however, were quickly dashed as Akamaru barged through the doorway and began barking at them.

Almost as soon as he had their attention, he turned and ran back outside. It was pretty obvious to Naruto that he wanted them to follow him. But if they needed Naruto, why hadn't one of the clones he'd left back at the ship just dispelled itself?

He'd have known what was going on sooner and without causing a scene. As it was, they were now clearly the center of attention in the room. Still, Akamaru had looked serious so he'd follow the large canine for now.

"Let's go," he ordered, quickly slamming some money on the table for the drinks they hadn't even received yet, then dashing out the door.

Upon leaving, he saw Akamaru waiting for them just outside, but he quickly took off again as soon as they were out in the open. Naruto and his crew followed after him, with Naruto resisting the urge to run on ahead to the ship.

Akamaru was obviously setting a pace they could all keep up with, and it's possible they weren't even heading there. If whatever had Akamaru so excited occurred elsewhere, there might not have been a clone around to dispel. Still, it wasn't long until they arrived at the dock and Naruto could see the reason for himself.

His clones were busy preparing the ship to depart. They must have sent Akamaru because he wouldn't be much use in that regard. Naruto looked for what could make them want to leave so quickly and saw a ship approaching in the distance. But it was still too far off for him to make out clearly.

"Hurry!" Kiba yelled to them as he saw them approach. "We're taking off now whether you're on board or not!"

It looked like Kiba was dead serious too. He was already pulling up the ramp they'd set down for departing the ship despite none of them having boarded yet. Kiba obviously felt this was urgent, so rather than argue, Naruto just grabbed Nojiko and jumped onto the ship that was already inching away.

As soon as he was aboard, he set Nojiko down, seeing that Tashigi and Akamaru had made the jump themselves, although Tashigi did stumble upon landing. Shino, meanwhile, was just reforming from the mass of bugs that had flown onto the ship.

"What's going on here?" Naruto demanded to know.

"No time to explain," Kiba said, taking the helm. "Just trust me that we have to get away from that ship."

Naruto looked to his clones for an explanation, but they just shrugged in response. They had now pulled away from the dock completely and Kiba kept looking fearfully through a telescope at the approaching vessel.

Determined to figure out what was going on, Naruto quickly entered the dining room and picked up a spare telescope from inside. Heading back to the deck Naruto got a look at the ship himself, but was confused by what he saw.

"That looks like a marine battleship," Naruto said, making known his thoughts. "Is it some kind of a disguise or something?"

"They're really marines," Kiba answered, only adding to Naruto's confusion.

"If they're marines, then why are we running?" Tashigi demanded to know, frustration at the lack of answers clearly getting to her.

"That's sort of a long story," Kiba answered hesitantly. "Actually, I guess it's not really so much long as it is complicated."

"Just spit it out already!" Naruto ordered sharply, finding himself getting just as steamed as Tashigi.

"That's my mom's ship," Kiba replied almost reflexively in response to the order.

"Shouldn't you be wanting to see your mother?" Nojiko asked him.

"You obviously have never met my mother," Kiba responded dejectedly.

Akamaru let out a whine as if to agree with the statement. The other ship had clearly spotted them and was adjusting its course to give pursuit. Naruto may have been fortunate when he ran off with this ship, but he wasn't about to risk fleeing a superior officer just because Kiba didn't want to meet his mother.

"Bring the ship around," he ordered.

"Do we have to?" Kiba protested, but Naruto just stared him down until he complied and altered course.

He had to admit, his friend's reaction had him more than a little curious about just what sort of family reunion this would turn out to be.

* * *

Kiba watched nervously as his mother and sister jumped down from the larger battleship to the much smaller vessel that Naruto commanded. At least she didn't look openly angry; that was a good sign. Still, he doubted she tracked him down just to see how he was doing.

"Hi, Mom," he greeted weakly.

"That's Commodore Tsume," she corrected. "We're on duty."

"Ah, sorry," he answered. "Well, congratulations on your promotion Commodore Tsume. Anyway, this is my commanding officer, Lieutenant Commander Naruto."

"Pleasure to meet you Ma'am," Naruto told her.

"Yes, I know who he is," Tsume replied, ignoring Naruto's greeting. "But as of now, he's only your former commanding officer. You're being transferred to my command."

"What?" Kiba shouted out in shock.

He caught Hana giving him a sympathetic look in response, and he knew his mother well enough to tell she was completely serious. This was worse than he'd feared. He had really come to enjoy his time on this ship.

It was true that if forced to, he'd admit that he really did care for his mother. But that didn't change the fact that getting away from her and living on his own had been about the best thing that had ever happened to him. There was no way he wanted to end that freedom by serving directly under her.

"We're in the middle of a mission," Kiba argued.

"Under orders from Rear Admiral Kakashi," Naruto added, and Kiba nodded appreciatively in his direction for coming to his aid.

"Yeah, and even with your promotion he still outranks you," Kiba pointed out.

"As if I'd leave you under that pervert's command," his mother answered blowing right past his protest.

"Pervert?" Tashigi asked, "It may not be my place to say so, but isn't it disrespectful to speak of a superior officer that way."

"I respect his strength," his mother replied, "But it doesn't change what he is. He may not be as bad as Vice Admiral Jiraiya, but he reads his books right out in the open. That's more than enough to make him a pervert."

Tashigi still looked shocked that such a high ranking officer would speak so poorly about those above even herself. If Tashigi really took offense he might get more support from her. Nojiko, however, didn't look at all eager to speak out against the near force of nature that was his mother.

He couldn't read Shino at all and had no idea what, if anything he would say. But even Akamaru was simply cowering behind Kiba, despite the fact there was no way his large frame would be hidden by Kiba's body.

So it looked like the only real support he could count on right now was from Naruto. But his mother wasn't finished making her case yet.

"And even putting his personal issues aside," she continued, "where does he get off sending you after Orochimaru under the command of a rookie no older than yourself? If I leave things as they are, you'll probably be dead before the end of the month."

He could see Naruto bristling at that slight and knew he wasn't going to let it pass quietly.

"He didn't expect Orochimaru to confront us," Naruto informed her tersely. "But even so, this rookie and his crew managed to capture him without any serious injury. And even for a marine, it's hardly a common occurrence to run into an opponent as strong as him."

"The way I hear things, you got another group of pirates to do most of the work for you and just took the credit," Kiba's mother fired back.

"None of this changes the fact that orders are orders," Kiba said smugly. "And there's nothing you can do about that."

He thought he finally had her until he saw his sister shaking her head sadly. His mother for her part was now sporting a wide grin.

"I'm glad you feel that way," she told him. "Because I have orders signed by Admiral Kizaru approving your transfer."

"I wonder how much you had to nag him to get that?" Kiba muttered under his breath.

"What was that?" he mother asked dangerously.

"Nothing!" Kiba replied quickly, that look of hers triggering a finely honed panic reflex. "I didn't say anything."

She continued staring him down for several seconds and Kiba could feel himself beginning to sweat. But she finally glanced away, letting it pass. Kiba let out a sigh of relief that he'd gotten off the hook on that one.

"Anyway, as you said, orders are orders," she told him. "So stop arguing and get over here. You too Akamaru."

Akamaru looked at Kiba briefly before scurrying over behind Kiba's mother with his tail between his legs. Betrayed by his own partner, huh? Well, he wasn't ready to give up just yet. But Naruto was the first one to speak up.

"Please, Ma'am," he began. "Kiba is a valued member of my crew. Without him, Orochimaru would have most likely killed all of us. Is there any way I could convince you to reconsider?"

His mother walked up to him fixing him with the harshest glare she'd yet given since her arrival, but Naruto somehow managed to avoid so much as flinching. After trying to stare him down for a few seconds, she traded her glare for a smirk.

"At least you have some guts," she told Naruto. "Tell me, did you find out anything about what pirates are in Mock Town?"

"We didn't get to explore fully," Naruto answered, "but we know Bellamy and his pirates are there, along with some pirate named Blackbeard. And we didn't see them, but we heard something about the Saruyama pirates as well."

"Hmm," his mother answered thoughtfully. "I'll tell you what, bring me Bellamy and this Blackbeard you already saw along with at least three other pirates with a bounty. There shouldn't be any shortage of those in Mock Town. If you can do that within one hour, I might just reconsider letting Kiba stay with you."

"Might?" Naruto asked.

Kiba felt a small amount of hope at this as well, but that same word that Naruto caught on to was keeping him from getting too excited. He wouldn't put it past his mother offer this chance only to toy with them.

"Depends on how impressed I am," she answered. "Say you come back just barely in time, badly injured, with the minimum three, and each of those being nobodies with bounties under 5 million. Well, I'm probably not going to be very impressed with that."

"So we just need to bring back a whole pile of big bounties?" Naruto asked.

"That certainly would help your chances," she replied. "But Kiba and Akamaru will be staying here. This is to test your strength, not theirs."

"Fine," Naruto answered firmly, "we'll start as soon as you're ready."

"No hesitation," his mother noted. "That at least is a point in your favor, assuming you prove yourself more than just talk. Anyway, I'm feeling generous, so Hana can stay here with Kiba and Akamaru to guard your ship for you while you're out pirate hunting. I'll go let my crew know what we're doing."

With that, his mother leaped back up onto her ship. Naruto didn't waste any time preparing their own vessel to head back for Mock Town. Kiba was about to go help him, when Hana grabbed his arm to stop him.

"She really is proud of you," Hana told him. "She's only doing this because she's genuinely worried. After all, what mother would calmly accept the news that her son had been in a fight with one of the Shichibukai?"

"Well, she sure has a lousy way of expressing her feelings," Kiba complained. "Now I really need to go help. Knowing her, she's already started counting down the hour."

So saying he began moving off to help with the sailing, but paused briefly to turn back to ask one last question.

"Did she really say she was proud of me?"

* * *

Naruto walked back into Mock Town along with Tashigi, Nojiko, and Shino. It looked liked subtlety wasn't going to be an option. Any chance of that had been destroyed when Tsume followed them in with that huge battleship of hers. It was now sitting anchored in the waters just outside the town, making it impossible to miss from anywhere nearby.

"Commodore Tsume seemed upset that her son had been involved in a dangerous mission," Shino pointed out. "Have you considered the possibility that the real test is to see if we avoid overly reckless activity?"

"She didn't strike me as the type to do that," Naruto replied. "But I know this is dangerous, and I won't force anyone to come with me if they'd rather stay behind."

"I'm not exactly happy about making a game out of this," Tashigi told him. "But it's my job to capture pirates and I'm not going to back down just because it's dangerous."

"Even after just a few minutes with her, I think I feel safer out here fighting a town full of criminals than back there with her," Nojiko added.

That left Shino, and Naruto waited for him to give his response.

"If you're determined to take this course of action, I suggest we remain as cautious as possible," Shino declared.

Feeling cheered that they were all behind him, Naruto resumed his course back toward the bar they'd recently departed. The streets were much more barren this time, as it seemed there weren't many pirates brave enough to challenge a marine vessel of that size.

As they neared the bar from before, he saw one of his targets exit the building. And that target was none other than Bellamy, who was now walking toward them expectantly.

"So, you guys were scouts for that marine ship, huh?" Bellamy asked. "You must have went running for your backup as soon as you realized who I was. But I'm sorry to say, I'm not going to be scared into surrendering to you. I'd make your peace in the short time you have left."

"Mind if I help you out?" a blue haired man standing next to him asked. "I'm feeling a bit stressed myself lately. I could use a workout."

"Go right ahead, Sarquiss," Bellamy replied. "We've got four fools to split between us."

"You're so generous today boss," Sarquiss responded taking out a short sword of some type.

Or maybe it was a large knife. Either way, it quickly became apparent that Bellamy had a devil fruit power, as his legs turned to springs and began to compress. Meanwhile, Sarquiss leaped at Tashigi, beginning a rapid vertical spin as he did that almost made him appear to be a giant bladed disc.

But Naruto didn't have time to help her, as Bellamy chose that moment to literally spring directly toward him. However, while the speed was faster than most opponents he'd faced, after Kabuto and Orochimaru, he almost seemed to be moving in slow motion.

Dodging easily to the side, he drove a fist into Bellamy's face, following through and sending the man head first into the ground. He finished just in time to see Tashigi easily knock the weapon out of the spinning Sarquiss's hand then twist and gave him a solid smack on the neck with the flat of her blade.

The force threw off his spinning, causing him to join him do a repeat of Bellamy's head first collision with the ground. Neither of them gave any indication of moving as their three remaining companions looked on in shock.

"They took out Bellamy and Sarquiss. Run for it!" one of them yelled.

But when the three of them turned to flee, they found themselves facing a swarm of bugs that swiftly descended on them. When Shino reformed himself, there were three more unmoving bodies on the floor.

"Good work," Naruto told them. "Now let's see if Blackbeard was kind enough to stick around."

"I'm here," the man he was just talking about answered, walking out of the bar. "But there's really no need to fight. As you probably overheard, I'm planning to become one of the Shichibukai. So I may as well get used to working with the marines."

"It's not that simple," Naruto replied. "My orders specifically involve bringing you in."

"That's unfortunate," Blackbeard told him. "But if you want to stop at any time, just let me know and I will. Then you can go back and tell your bosses how cooperative I can be."

"My gun is aimed right between your eyes," Nojiko informed him, and a quick glance by Naruto confirmed she was being truthful. "I suggest you surrender now if you hope to get out of this alive."

"Don't be hasty," Blackbeard replied slowly lifting his hands into the air.

But when they were about chest level, the gun flew right out of Nojiko's hand and into the waiting palm of Blackbeard. Looking at it briefly he stuck it into his belt.

"That was dangerous, young lady," Blackbeard chided. "You shouldn't play with guns."

That was an interesting ability. But it was time for Naruto to show off his. Summoning two clones behind the large pirate, Naruto was able to catch Blackbeard completely off guard when one of them opened with a punch square to his back.

His clone had aimed well, sending the man directly toward Naruto, who punched it right back. But rather than hit it a third time, his clone simply stopped Blackbeard's momentum and held him in place. This allowed his other clone to make use of its running start and catch Blackbeard with a powerful punt that sent him twisting and tumbling about a hundred feet back toward the dock.

Shino meanwhile had already converted himself into insect form, and a large swarm was speeding its way toward the fallen man. It seemed this opponent was a little more resilient than the last one, as he'd at least managed to sit himself back up despite all the punishment he'd received.

"Stay back," Blackbeard said fearfully as he waved his arms in front of him as if to ward the insects off.

But Shino didn't listen and instead the mass of insects appeared to absorb the man's arms. It looked like this fight was over. But Blackbeard simply smirked and for some reason Shino was actually switching back to his human form right in front of the man.

Normally he couldn't read Shino at all, but he actually looked surprised by this turn of events. For his part, Blackbeard put his large hand around the young bounty hunter's neck and stood up, lifting Shino off the ground.

Naruto didn't know what was going on with Shino's powers. But worried for his safety, Naruto rushed toward the combatants to see if he could free his crew member. Seeing him coming, Blackbeard simply tossed Shino to the side to face approaching threat.

Shino managed to right himself, if a bit unsteadily, so Naruto decided to deal with Blackbeard rather than seeing to Shino. His advance was halted, however, when he saw a shroud of darkness emanating from Blackbeard's body and speeding along the ground toward him.

Naruto didn't know what effect it would have if it hit him, but he wasn't eager to find out. So rather than continue on, he leaped away in an effort to avoid it. It would have been a good plan too, if the darkness hadn't already expanded to encompass the area he was going to land.

Thankfully a quick application of Geppou allowed him to leap in mid air toward solid ground. And he really was thankful it had worked, as he wasn't yet to the point where he could use that ability reliably. His clones for their part couldn't use it all. And since the two of them were in the same situation he'd just been in, they didn't have a way to avoid the darkness when they landed.

They would, however, make good guinea pigs into the effect of that power. The moment the two of them touched the blackness, they disappeared, although oddly enough, they wavered and just sort of faded out of existence rather than going in a puff of smoke as they usually would.

Naruto prepared himself for the incoming memories, but found his preparations for what hit him fully inadequate. It was more like his brain was being assaulted by disjointed flashed and sounds rather than coherent memories. Unable to cope, he found himself completely disoriented by the experience.

The sensations soon passed and he began to pull his thoughts back together. Based on what had happened with Shino, he suspected Blackbeard could disrupt powers somehow. So what had just happened to him may have been his power being disrupted as the memories were being transferred to him.

It did make him reluctant to use summon any clones to replace them after what had just happened. That was a seriously annoying power. Although he supposed it was even worse for Shino. He depended on using that venom of his bugs, but if he got close, Blackbeard would probably just force him back into human form again.

So despite seeming to have recovered, Shino had yet to rejoin the fight, instead choosing to stand back and watch just as Nojiko was doing without her gun. Tashigi at least had already closed the distance and was taking swings at Blackbeard. The large man seemed to be near his limit just avoiding being sliced to pieces.

Watching her go at their opponent, Naruto climbed back to his feet, not even able to recall having fallen in the first place. But if he didn't pull himself together soon, Tashigi would win this for them almost by herself.

Or so he thought until Blackbeard slipped past an attack and managed to grab one large, meaty hand around both of Tashigi's wrists. He then squeezed hard enough to force her to drop her sword, leaving her hanging there helplessly.

With a surge of adrenaline, Naruto sprinted toward Tashigi. But once again, Blackbeard chose to simply toss away his captured adversary. This time, however, he threw his captive directly at Naruto, as if using Tashigi body as a throwing weapon.

Naruto caught her as carefully as he could, setting her down behind him. Blackbeard, meanwhile, picked up the sword that Tashigi had just dropped and examined it.

"This was Orochimaru's sword, wasn't it?" he asked. "You guys aren't the ones who took him out, are you?"

"And what if we are?" Naruto questioned.

"Why I'd have to thank you for opening a spot for me," he replied. "And also for giving me the opportunity to fight you. This might be a chance to earn a little fame after all."

"Give me back Kusanagi," Tashigi demanded, interrupting their conversation. "A pirate like you doesn't deserve that sword."

"Since you asked so nicely I suppose I might as well," Blackbeard replied. "I'm not much of a swordsman after all."

Blackbeard held the sword point out facing Tashigi. Naruto had to wonder what the man was doing, considering they were standing more than fifty feet from him. That was until Tashigi lifted off the ground and began flying toward where Blackbeard was holding his free hand, palm outward.

Reacting quickly Naruto managed to grab Tashigi's arm before she was out of range, but rather than bringing her flight to a halt, he just found himself being pulled along. Tashigi was still headed straight for the point of her own sword, so Naruto had to act quickly.

With a brief application of Geppou, he was able to pivot around Tashigi so he was now between her and Blackbeard. Then, hardening his muscles with Tekkai, he prepared for the impact. He just hoped he was able to handle a sword that sharp.

Soon enough, his chest slammed into the point of the blade bringing him to a sudden halt. He felt Tashigi's body slam into his back from the rapid deceleration. Glancing down while being careful not to move, he saw blood, but realized it was little more than a pinprick and his Tekkai had held.

Still, he couldn't let ability go, as Blackbeard's ability was still holding him in the air and pressing his body up against the sharp weapon.

"That's impressive control you have over that technique," Blackbeard praised him. "But such tricks are useless against me."

What happened next was somewhat difficult to explain. Naruto felt almost as if some sort of energy were coming from the man and surrounding Naruto, trying to suffocate him. He didn't know what this ability was, but he wouldn't let it distract him. He was confident he wouldn't waver. So it came as a huge shock when Kusanagi slid easily into has chest as if his resistance had just vanished.

How had that happened? He'd been so sure his Tekkai was still active. With a shock he'd realized that blade had gone in pretty deep and Tashigi had still been behind him. Twisting his head around, he saw that the blade had gone straight through and out his back, but had stopped short of skewering Tashigi as well.

The young woman now dropped to the ground as Blackbeard released his power, leaving the sword the only thing holding Naruto in the air. He let out a sigh of relief, or at least tried to, as in reality it turned into a bloody cough. It looked like his lung had been pierced; things weren't looking good.

But he found himself remarkably calm. Although it was becoming difficult to even think. He barely even noticed when the blade pulled free from his chest, dropping him to the ground. Watching Tashigi kneel over him, he realized he should probably say something to her. But no words came and soon all thoughts of speaking fading from his mind along with everything else.

* * *

Shino watched helplessly as Naruto's chest was pierced by the sword. He briefly allowed himself to hope this was merely a clone, but it was blood and not smoke the poured forth from the wound. They had completely lost this fight, and the price was already quite high. But perhaps it didn't have to go any higher.

So as Tashigi knelt over their fallen leader, and Nojiko rushed to join her, Shino turned instead to Blackbeard.

"You said we could end this fight whenever we wished, correct?" Shino asked. "If so, then we wish to end it now."

"Sure, as long as you promise to recommend me for that opening in the Shichibukai," Blackbeard answered.

He only hoped his two companions would go along with this. It was easy to tell that both women were quite emotional, and it may lead them to irrationally attempt revenge in a fight they couldn't win.

"Shino, don't just stand there, we need to stop the bleeding," Tashigi shouted at him.

It seemed that at least for the moment, their irrational behavior was aimed in a different direction. That was not a wound one could survive. But despite that fact Nojiko and Tashigi were doing their best to save him.

"I'll be sure to do that," Shino promised Blackbeard.

Ignoring Tashigi's command, he instead moved over to the fallen pirates, lifting Bellamy over one shoulder and Sarquiss over the other. He then began trudging back toward the ship.

"Where are you going?" Nojiko asked accusingly as he passed by them.

"I'm going back to the ship," he answered.

"We need to save Naruto first," Nojiko argued, but when Shino looked at the fallen young man, he realized just how hopeless the their cause truly was.

"That would be a pointless endeavor," Shino answered. "He's already dead."

Nojiko turned to check on Naruto. He saw her looking for a pulse, or signs of breathing, or anything to prove him wrong. But finally, her expression made clear the fact that she could deny it further. Shino truly felt sorry for his two companions.

As much as he was doing his best to remain levelheaded, he was not himself immune to the sorrow brought on by their present situation. And given that they'd both known Naruto longer than he had, it would only be worse for them. As of now though, the best thing he could do was to try to get the rest of them out alive.

We need to return to the ship," he told them. "Naruto wouldn't want us to throw our own lives away to avenge him."

Maybe it was simply shock, but neither of them argued.

"Ah, before you go, why don't you take your weapons back," Blackbeard told them. "Just to show you what a nice guy I am."

So saying, he tossed Nojiko's gun and Tashigi's sword so that they landed near their respective owner's feet. Each of the young women struggled over what to do with the weapon. Nojiko immediately picked hers up, but looked to be strongly considering using it.

For her part, Tashigi seemed reluctant to even touch the bloody sword. But eventually Nojiko holstered her gun, and Tashigi picked up Kusanagi. Wiping the blade on a piece of cloth she pulled from her pocket, Tashigi then sheathed it.

Having taken care of their weapons, the two girls lifted Naruto's body by his arms and legs and began to follow him to the boat. As they went, Nojiko and Tashigi barely showed more signs of life than corpse they were carrying. It was almost as if they were just puppets being put through the motions.

They hadn't gotten far when he spotted Kiba and Akamaru sprinting in their direction, most likely having watched their fight from the boat. Both of them came to a stop right next to Naruto's body.

"Is he really ... ?" Kiba asked, seeming unable to finish the question.

"I'm afraid so," Shino answered him.

Kiba's face immediately turned into a snarl of rage, as he turned to where Blackbeard was walking off in the other direction. Acting quickly, Shino tossed Bellamy's unconscious body at the young Inuzuka, watching him catch it reflexively.

"If you want to get yourself killed, I won't stop you," Shino told him. "But if you want to avenge Naruto, I suggest you come with me, and delay the fight until another day, when you're more prepared."

Kiba didn't respond immediately, instead watching Blackbeard's slowly retreating form. It wasn't until he'd finally disappeared around a bend that Kiba actually reacted, sending his fist crashing through the wall of a wooden building they stood next to.

As Kiba pulled his hand from the small hole he'd just created, Shino saw that it now sported a number of splinters, some of them quite large. But Kiba ignored that fact and turned back in the direction he'd just come from.

"Well, let's go," he said. "I don't want to put up with this town's stench any longer than necessary."

When they arrived at their destination, Kiba tossed Bellamy unceremoniously to the deck before he'd even finished boarding. He then turned to confront his mother who was waiting for them a short distance away.

"Get off our ship," Kiba ordered her coldly.

"Kiba, I had no idea Blackbeard would be so strong," she began. "How was I supposed to know? He doesn't even have a bounty."

"This all your fault to begin with," he snarled. "So I don't care what your stupid orders say. You can either get off the ship now or I'm going to throw you overboard."

Rather than saying anything, Kiba's mother simply turned weakly and did as she was told. It was a strange contrast to before when she almost radiated authority. Shino wasn't generally one let his judgment be influenced by such things, but even he could swear she almost looked smaller than when he'd last seen her.

Kiba's sister sent them one brief almost apologetic glance before following her mother off the ship. That left just the four of them and their captives on the deck of the smaller vessel. And looking around at their state, Shino only hoped that they could summon up the collective will to actually sail the ship back to the base.

* * *

When the funeral service had concluded, Nojiko approached the casket to pay one last farewell to Captain Namikaze Naruto. The double promotion they had awarded him posthumously had been a nice gesture, and she was sure he appreciated it wherever he was.

It was hard to believe she had joined his crew simply to interfere with his work. That all seemed as if it had happened ages ago. Her journey had turned into something that had become one of the most memorable experiences of her life. So to have it all come to such a sudden and jarring end seemed all too cruel.

Anyway, having paid her final respects, she turned her attention to other issues. Namely Tashigi, who had not shown up to the funeral. Although she would wager she knew where the other woman was. Leaving the building where the ceremony had taken place, Nojiko walked across G-5 base until she came to a building that served as a training room.

Upon entering, she found Tashigi busy training with her sword. The young woman looked completely worn out. Her breathing was heavily labored and she looked as if every movement she made was done through sheer willpower.

"You've done nothing but train since Naruto's death," Nojiko told her. "You have to get some rest or you'll work yourself to death."

Tashigi did stop in response. Signaling for her to hold on, Tashigi waited until she had gained some control over her breathing.

"I get eight hours of sleep every night and eat three meals a day," Tashigi answered. "It would only hurt my training regime if I didn't."

"You know what I mean," Nojiko retorted. "Anyway, you missed the funeral."

"I didn't deserve to be there," Tashigi answered. "The only reason he's dead is because I was too weak."

"That's not true," Nojiko insisted. "You were more useful in the fight than I was. I lost my gun before I'd had a chance to do anything and was completely useless the rest of the fight."

"It's not the same," Tashigi snapped. "I was the one he died protecting. And it was my weapon Blackbeard used to kill him. It was my failure as a swordswoman that led to this. So I'm going to work to make sure that never happens again."

Nojiko was blown back by the force of her response. She'd been almost robotic in her training lately, so to see so much emotion was quite a surprise. But Nojiko didn't know if it was a good sign or a bad one.

"There's probably nothing I can say that will make you feel better," Nojiko told her. "But I just have to tell you that he wouldn't want you to do this to yourself."

"I'm sure he didn't want to die either," Tashigi said bitterly. "But I seem to be pretty good at letting him down."

Nojiko didn't know if there was anything further she could say that might help. So instead of making another attempt, she decided to leave Tashigi alone for now. Whether sensing her decision, or just growing tired of their conversation, Tashigi had gone back to training without further comment. Turning to depart, Nojiko was a bit startled to see Shino standing by the door.

"It's admirable that you're trying to help Tashigi adjust," he told her. "Especially as things must be even harder for you."

"Why would that be?" she asked in confusion.

Shino didn't think they'd been a couple or something like that, did he?

"I mean you recently learned of your sister's death as well," he clarified.

"Nami isn't dead," Nojiko insisted, a bit louder than she'd really intended.

She didn't know who had told Shino about her relationship to Nami, but she was not at all pleased that he was writing her sister off.

"You heard what Blackbeard said," Shino told her. "Their ship was hit by a knockup stream. It's highly improbable any of them survived the fall."

"They didn't fall," Nojiko announced stubbornly. "They went to Sky Island."

"I find that ... difficult to believe," Shino answered. "I've heard of no evidence that such a place exists."

"It does exist," Tashigi said from behind her.

Nojiko hadn't realized she was there, but she had probably been attracted by the volume Nojiko had been speaking at if nothing else.

"There's no way that man would die so easily," Tashigi continued. "When he returns I'll defeat him myself. Until then I'll train myself for that day."

"If you say so," Shino told them, clearly still not believing their claim despite his words. "Anyway, I came to tell you that I'll be departing in a day or two. I have to secure a new ship and make some final preparations, but after that I intend to return to bounty hunting on my own."

"I'm actually considering leaving myself," Nojiko admitted, feeling glad Shino had brought it up first so it didn't feel so awkward. "I'm thinking I might go back home."

She was also thinking of trying to find Nami and joining up with them, but she wasn't about to say that in front of Tashigi.

"As long as we're splitting up, I may see if I can get put back under Commodore Smoker's command," Tashigi informed them.

"That just leaves Kiba and Akamaru," Nojiko replied. "Unless Kiba's mother takes them after all. She was at the funeral, you know."

"As tragic as recent events were, I don't regret working with any of you," Shino told them. "I wish you both well in your future endeavors."

Even as flatly as he'd said that it was still probably the nicest thing she'd ever heard Shino say. And it really drove home the fact that this chapter of her life really was over. They were all going their separate ways.

* * *

**Several Days Earlier**

Naruto struggled to wake up, his body seeming to fight his efforts for some reason. But even in his semi-conscious state, he could tell how terribly thirsty he was. But how could be feeling thirsty? He shouldn't be able to feel thirst.

No, that wasn't right. If anything he should be wondering how he was still alive after taking a sword through his chest. Wait, when had that happened? He'd just been standing on the deck of Ino's ship and that was the last thing he could recall.

But he finally fought off the haze enough to force open his eyes, finding himself looking up from a bed at a figure standing over him.

"You're finally awake," Shikamaru noted. "We were wondering if you were going to ever wake up. We thought maybe it was some crazy side effect of being too far away from your real self or something."

"Water," Naruto said weakly, forcing his request from a dry throat and a parched mouth.

"I thought you didn't need food or water," Shikamaru replied.

"Water," Naruto repeated.

Shikamaru shrugged and found a canteen which he handed to Naruto.

"Drink it slowly, I guess," Shikamaru advised.

Following his advice, Naruto sipped the water. It did provide some relief as he slowly drank it, but his whole body still felt half dead.

"Care to explain what's going on?" Shikamaru queried. "You've been unconscious for more than two days."

"I'm pretty sure I died," Naruto replied. "The real me that is."

"And your clone somehow survived your death?" he asked expressing more interest than he'd probably ever seen out of the normally lazy and apathetic boy.

But he supposed it wasn't often you got to talk to someone about their own death.

"Actually, I believe I'm not just a clone anymore," Naruto answered.

With how horrible his body felt, and the need for water, he couldn't see how it could be anything else. Experimentally he attempted to summon a clone of his own, and found that it popped into place beside him just as he'd intended.

"Well, that's certainly a useful power," Shikamaru told him. "I wasn't sure I quite believed you about it until now."

But Naruto wasn't even listening as he realized he didn't know how the fight with Blackbeard had ended. Had his crew even survived? Naruto struggled to get to his feet but couldn't even get the energy to sit up, despite his best attempts.

With that solution barred, he decided to go with a different method, directing his gaze toward his newly summoned clone.

"Go find out what happened," he ordered.

His clone nodded briefly and ran out the door of the room they were in. For now, Naruto would just have to lie here in bed and wait. But one way or another, he would find out what happened to his crew. And if Blackbeard had harmed any of them, he would make sure he payed the man back tenfold.

* * *

**AN**

I bet a lot you were sort of expecting the ending of this chapter by the time it rolled around. But I'm hoping I had at least some of you worried. And yes, I created the clone adventures segment for the sole purpose of setting up for this chapter. So yeah, they're officially over.

I was very tempted to break this chapter off right before the revelation at the end. But that would make it difficult to prove I'd been planning to do this rather than simply reacting to negative feedback/death threats from my readers. But at the very least, I did get to leave you wondering if he can manage to contact his crew before they all go their separate ways.

Anyway, if you have the time, drop me a review and let me know if you though this chapter was good, dull, or if I should lock all my doors and windows and sleep with a gun.


	12. Chapter 12

Jiraiya, was pretty sure that this Monkey D. Luffy that had become such a rising star in the pirate world, was the same Luffy that Garp had declared his grandson. However, even knowing that hadn't led him any closer to solving the parentage mystery of Luffy. And he was similarly stuck with Naruto.

About the only thing he'd discovered during his occasional investigations was that neither Minato nor Garp had any official record of having children. Garp he could imagine simply not bothering to fill out the form, but he couldn't understand why Minato wouldn't. After all, simply being named Minato's son would have made Naruto eligible for survival benefits upon his death.

In addition, it was a simple form that stood in stark contrast to the sea of red tape paperwork usually entailed. All you needed was the child's name, date of birth, parents' names, and a signature. Jiraiya was still going with the 'ignored the paperwork' theory for Garp. As for Minato, he had three theories.

The first was that he'd done it to protect Naruto from potential enemies he'd made during his career. Although that left the question of why Naruto had been raised in Minato's own village. It wasn't as if Minato's home was much of a secret.

So if anyone truly had borne him a grudge, it would have been child's play to locate the village and search for anything Minato held dear. Such a search probably wouldn't have had any trouble uncovering Naruto.

The second possibility was that he hadn't filled it out because he didn't want to reveal the mother. He could just imagine a steamy forbidden romance with a princess or an affair with married woman. That of course would be followed by a hidden pregnancy or a perhaps a faked stillbirth.

After which the baby was sent with Minato to hide his existence, or the fact that his blond hair and blue eyes couldn't possibly have come from woman's husband. It sounded like the perfect topic for one of his novels, but it wasn't at all the type of behavior he would attribute to Minato.

The young man had always been too strait-laced. He was the type who would have insisted on marrying before even considering doing the deed. No, that theory was probably just wishful thinking on his part.

The final possibility was that he had filled out the form, but it had been removed from the records after the fact. Perhaps denying his son the funding as a final punishment for Minato's actions just prior to his death. Although none of these theories explained why Minato had never said anything about a son to him in the first place.

Not having found an answer that satisfied him, Jiraiya pressed on with his investigation. Although he was running out of potential leads. Currently he was occupying himself by looking through old mission reports Minato had written. For that purpose, he was presently located in one of Marinford's repositories of such records.

He was hoping something in them would give him a clue. But after a day wasted in here searching, he'd read every one of Minato's reports and was now skimming through the report of his death. The marines that had been sent to find the AWOL admiral had determined that Minato had been killed fighting pirates to protect his home town.

Frustrated at his lack of results, he went to put the report back in its proper position in the folder marked Leaf Island when something caught his eye. The report that came chronologically just prior to the one he'd been reading had a familiar name on it.

Picking it up he read the report to confirm his eyes hadn't been playing tricks on him. In doing so, he confirmed that it clearly stated that Dr Vegapunk was being transported to Leaf Island. Doing a quick comparison of the dates showed that this report was filed only a week prior to one mentioning Minato's death.

However, according the document, all further information on the mission was classified. That was something you didn't see often. You weren't even allowed into this room unless your rank was captain or higher, so there weren't many reports in here that required even higher clearance.

But he hadn't worked his way up to vice admiral for nothing. Taking the report, he marched up to the man administrating this building. He grimaced a bit at seeing the World Government uniform he was wearing.

These were marine records. Why did the World Government have to stick its nose in this by sending some bureaucrat to watch over them? Still, doing his best to hide his distaste, he approached the man and handed him the piece of paper.

"I'd like to know where the rest of the information on this event is stored," he told the man.

"Of course," the man answered. "Just let me look that up for you."

After examining the report, he grabbed a folder from a stack in front of him. Opening it, he rifled through the papers inside until he finally found the one he was looking for. Jiraiya expected him to quickly recite off the information he wanted, but instead the man simply sat there frowning.

"I'm afraid you don't have the clearance for that information," the bureaucrat told him.

"What?" Jiraiya asked in confusion. "You do know I'm a vice admiral, right?"

"Yes, I am aware of that," he answered. "But that rank still isn't sufficient for the information on that report."

Inwardly Jiraiya's mind was abuzz with questions. What was Vegapunk doing on such a middle of nowhere island that would be considered so highly classified? There were only four men in the marines that outranked him. So if he didn't have clearance to see that report, that left very few men who did.

Jiraiya didn't know if this had anything to do with Minato or Naruto other than a suspicious timing. But even if it was unrelated, it was a new mystery for him to explore. Perhaps he should try to find some time to visit Leaf Island.

He could look into the whole Dr Vegapunk situation and ask some questions about Naruto at the same time. Yes, he'd definitely do that the first chance he got.

* * *

Naruto hurried toward the small marine outpost that was present on the island they'd just arrived on. He'd hardly even waited for them to pull up to the dock before jumping off. Not knowing what had happened to his crew was little short of torture.

"Wait for us!" Ino called out from behind him.

"Why?" Naruto asked. "This doesn't concern you."

Despite his words, he did pause, deciding he'd at least hear her out. In doing so he noticed that she was dragging Shikamaru along behind her, more or less literally.

"I just want to see how this goes," she replied. "Besides, you owe me for bringing you here."

"This was our destination to begin with," Naruto argued.

"That still doesn't change the fact that you couldn't have made it without me," Ino fired back.

Grinding his teeth he seriously considered starting off again at his top speed to deliberately leave her behind. But his body still hadn't fully recovered from his ordeal, so he'd prefer to avoid that. Besides, it was a short distance to the outpost, and she'd make his life miserable once she caught up if he went through with that.

So instead, he resumed his previous course at a more measured pace. He'd waited this long, he could wait an extra minute or two. Walking in silence, he soon came to the outpost, which really was no bigger than a single family home. Entering, he saw two men sitting at a table, playing cards.

"Can I help you?" one of the men asked, barely even looking up from what he was doing.

"I'm Lieutenant Commander Naruto," he answered. "I need to contact G-5 Base. Do you have a den den mushi I could use?"

"Right over there," he replied, pointing to where one sat on a counter.

"I thought you were only a lieutenant," Shikamaru commented.

"I was promoted," Naruto informed him as he walked over and picked up the receiver.

After calling the base, Naruto didn't have to wait long for someone to pick up. He was greeted by a man's voice on the other end. Brushing aside the greeting, Naruto got right to the point.

"I need to speak to Lieutenant Tashigi or Lieutenant Kiba," he declared. "Are either of them currently at the base."

"I believe they're both here," the voice came back. "Let me see if one of them is available."

Assuming the man knew what he was talking about, it offered some small comfort to know that at least those two had made it out alive. Still, the several minutes he was forced to wait seemed intolerably long. So it was quite a relief when he heard Kiba's voice coming from the den den mushi.

"Hello. You wanted to talk to me?" Kiba asked. "Who is this, by the way?"

"This is Naruto," he replied, and was going to continue if he hadn't been cut off immediately by Kiba.

"I don't know what you're trying to pull," Kiba responded angrily. "But Naruto is dead, so it's not going to work."

"Did everyone else make it okay?" Naruto asked, holding off on correcting Kiba for now due to his worry.

"Yeah," Kiba answered not sounding at all happy about that. "We ran off with our tails between our legs, but it let us save our own hides."

"That's great," Naruto said cheerfully. "Everything's fine then."

"Everything is not fine!" Kiba shouted back at him. "You think it's okay as long as Naruto is the only one who died or something?"

"Naruto isn't dead," he replied. "I already told you I'm Naruto. I ..."

Before he could explain Kiba cut him off again.

"This has to be the sickest joke I've ever heard of!" Kiba raged. "We haven't even had the funeral yet and you're already using his name in some kind of a prank? I'm not going to listen to this anymore."

He tried to reason with Kiba, but the connection had already been severed. Annoyed, Naruto called G-5 a second time and was greeted by the same man he'd originally spoken to.

"Put Kiba back on please," Naruto told him.

"I heard everything that happened," the man answered, "and I'm not going to be party to your little game a second time. I don't want you calling here again."

With that the connection went dead again. Not giving up Naruto called a third time, but instead of someone picking up, the den den mushi was just making a 'bip bip bip' sound. He didn't know much about den den mushi, but somehow they were blocking his call or something.

Naruto was going to kill Kiba when he met up with him. But for now, how could he get in contact with his crew? They obviously thought he was dead, and he'd like to correct that misunderstanding as quickly as possible.

He only wish he knew how to call his own ship, but he'd never expected the issue to come up. It looked like he was going to have to go to G-5 himself.

"Do you have an eternal pose that's set to G-5?" he asked the marines, who were still busy with their game of cards, not seeming the least perturbed by the conversation he'd just had.

"We've got a few in that cupboard over there," one of the pair responded. "Feel free to take one if it'll get you out of here. It's hard to concentrate on the game with all your yapping."

Naruto wasn't about to turn the man down, and hurried over to the cupboard, quickly finding the eternal pose he was looking for.

"I hope you aren't expecting me to go all the way to this base for you?" Ino asked. "Because there's no chance I'm going that far out of my way."

If that's how she felt, he should just kill her whole crew and steal the ship. Wait, where had that thought come from? He must be more stressed out than he thought. He'd definitely give a much more restrained response than that.

"If you don't take me, then I'll just find another ship," Naruto answered firmly.

"So, you're just going to leave me undefended in the middle of the Grand Line after all?" Ino queried, falling into her usual routine. "I thought you had more honor than that."

Naruto was not about to let himself be caught by that trick this time. And quite frankly, he was angry she was even trying to pull it again despite the circumstances.

"Look, I've gone along with you all this time," Naruto began forcefully. "I've helped you out of several messes of your own creation. I've let you manipulate me into putting up with you even when I'd rather just strangle you and be done with it."

He was pleased to see that his little tirade had caught Ino flatfooted, leaving her speechless for once. Taking advantage of that fact, he decided to continue before she recovered.

"But I'm a marine, and my primary duty is with them," he told her. "So I am going to return to G-5, whether you like it or not."

Naruto knew he could offer to leave a clone with her that would continue on much as the clone that led to his survival had. But he was so sick of Ino at the moment that he wasn't even about to offer that to her. He much preferred watching her face turn red with fury as she tried to come up with a suitable response. But it was Shikamaru who spoke first.

"Wouldn't you like to be able to sell more of our products from South Blue in the Grand Line?" Shikamaru asked Ino.

"In case you've forgotten, Reverse Mountain is sort of a one way trip," Ino answered. "Any ships we bring over are stuck here. Besides that, I don't even see what this has to do with our conversation."

"But marine ships can travel safely through the calm belt," Shikamaru reminded her. "The marines are already a big customer of your father's. I think I could convince them to carry some cargo across for us to sell from time to time. The only real problem is getting an audience with someone high enough ranked to authorize it."

Naruto was pretty sure he could see where Shikamaru was going with this.

"You know, I could probably set up a meeting with the rear admiral in charge of G-5 if you'd like," Naruto offered.

Ino appeared conflicted, and he could almost picture her anger at him warring with her desire for profit in her mind.

"Fine, I'll take you," she finally said. "But you'd better give a glowing recommendation to this rear admiral of yours."

"I'll do what I can," he promised her.

"Well then, let's not waste any time," she said, turning to walk out of the outpost. "If we can start bringing over more of our company's best products, we'll be rolling in cash soon enough. I did tell you I got five million beri for that gun right?"

"I still think you could have got a lot more for it," Shikamaru told her. "Their guns here in the Grand Line are extremely primitive by comparison."

"And I still think you're crazy," Ino fired back. "I was thrilled to get as much as I did for it. Do you really think there's an idiot out there would pay much more than 5 million for a handgun and some bullets, no matter how good it is?"

As Naruto followed the two of them out the door, he sincerely hoped neither of them looked back. As he doubted he'd have much luck at hiding his embarrassed reaction to Ino's statement. Yeah, he'd make sure not to mention that particular ten million beri purchase to them.

* * *

Naruto was finally feeling more or less at peak condition. So as they sailed along their route to G-5, he decided to see if he could figure out how he'd survived the fight with Blackbeard. Not that he intended to kill himself or anything. But somehow he'd been transferred to his clone when his body had died.

So if he had that power, maybe it was something he could do consciously as well. In order to test his theory, he summoned a clone next to himself. If this worked, he just hoped it didn't leave him unconscious for two days again.

Still, despite his worries, he began to will himself to transfer to his clone. Suddenly his vision shifted, and he felt a small stream of incoming memories. It had been a success, and he didn't even feel in the least bit tired.

Looking back at where he'd just been standing, he tried to dismiss the body he saw standing there and saw it vanish in a puff of smoke. This certainly had potential. In fact, there was something he wanted to try.

This time, he summoned a clone that looked just like Kiba. Willing himself to switch with it, he found his point of view changing once again. But examining himself, he was disappointed to see he was back in his original form.

He was hoping he'd be able to use this to disguise himself. But beyond that, the clone that now stood where he'd just been didn't look like Kiba either. So it seemed it wasn't as simple as he and his clone switching positions either.

Still, he should move on to the next phase of testing. Pulling out a knife he'd pocketed for this purpose, he pricked his little finger with the point, seeing a drop of blood come out. Switching with his clone, he examined his pricked finger to find it devoid of any damage.

Considering those implications, Naruto lifted the right leg of his pants looking for an old scar he'd had since he was a kid. But he couldn't find the slightest hint of it. Had he just stumbled upon a way to cure himself of any wound? He'd have to test something a little bigger before he could conclude that.

Taking out the knife again, he unceremoniously slashed open his left palm. Ignoring the blood, he switched once again with his clone. As soon as he had, he was instantly hit by an immense weariness. It felt like he'd just had a major workout on every single muscle in his entire body.

That wound was gone, but had such a shallow cut across his hand had strained him this much? No wonder he'd been out for a couple of days after what Blackbeard had done. So it seemed he would have to think twice about using this ability to cure whatever wound he received in battle.

Depending on the wound, the exhaustion may very well be worse than the injury. And speaking of exhaustion, after his experimentation, he felt it may be best to just go back to his room and get some rest. They'd be at G-5 soon enough.

* * *

Tashigi knew it was nearly Shino's declared departure time. Nojiko had asked her to be there, but Tashigi hadn't yet decided if she'd go. There's no telling how long such an event would turn out to be, and she didn't want to interrupt her training for too long.

She still had a few minutes left to consider it, however, so she put it out of her mind for now and went back to some basic strength training, making use of the weights that were available in the training room. She may never be as physically strong as a man, but if she slacked on her training in that regard it would only increase her handicap.

But she'd barely started up again when Karl ran into the room, white-faced and panting. She paused briefly, curious as to what was going on.

"A ghost!" Karl called out to her. "Naruto's ghost. I saw him myself wandering the graveyard."

"What?" Tashigi cried out, dropping the weight she'd been lifting suddenly enough that it cracked a section of the wooden floor upon. "You're absolutely sure of this?"

"I wouldn't be telling you if I wasn't," Karl answered.

Unless Karl was an amazing actor, he was telling the truth. He looked genuinely terrified. Not waiting for any further confirmation, she ran out of the building and took off full speed toward the graveyard. Her adrenaline had already wiped away all traces of the weariness she'd built up during her training that day.

Tashigi had been so shocked by the news, she hadn't even been able to gather her thoughts yet by the time she arrived at the graveyard. Looking around, it didn't take her but moment to lock her eyes on the back of a familiar figure.

Karl had been telling the truth. But if Naruto's ghost was here, that must mean he had some unfinished business that kept him. Did he blame her for his death after all? Gathering her courage, she approached the apparition. As she did, Naruto heard or sensed her or something and turned around.

"It's weird standing over your own grave," he told her.

Looking at his face again, she found she could no longer hold back the emotions she'd been suppressing since his death.

"I'm sorry," she told him, lowering her face toward the ground as tears welled up in her eyes.

"For what?" Naruto asked.

It seemed he was going to make her say it. Well, she owed him that much at least.

"If I hadn't been so weak none of this would have happened," she answered, nearly sobbing as she spoke. "I lost my sword, and Blackbeard used it against you. And he wouldn't have even had the opportunity if you weren't protecting me. You must hate me for being so helpless."

"I don't hate you," Naruto replied quickly.

"You don't?" Tashigi asked hopefully, looking up at the spirit's face again.

She hadn't realized how much those words would mean to her.

"Of course not," Naruto said. "It wasn't your fault."

Tashigi actually felt like a huge weight had been lifted from her shoulders. She was grateful she'd been given this opportunity to speak with him one last time. Now, she should try to repay Naruto by helping with whatever was keeping him in this plane of existence.

"Then why are you here?" she asked. "Is there someone else you're angry with?"

"Well, now that you mention it, I am pretty upset with Kiba right now," Naruto answered.

Kiba? She supposed it did make sense. But she should at least try to settle his anger.

"Is there any way you could just forgive him?" Tashigi asked.

"Oh no," Naruto replied. "I'm not letting him off the hook that easily."

"Well, if you truly wish it, I'll bring Kiba to you," Tashigi told him. "But please, just move on to the other side."

With that Tashigi spun around and ran off back out of the graveyard. She found she couldn't risk talking to him any further. Naruto just seemed so real, that she was afraid if she lingered to long she'd start wanting him to stay behind.

But he deserved better than to be trapped as a ghost. So she was going to find Kiba and bring him to Naruto before she lost her resolve.

* * *

Naruto wondered if it was really too much to ask to take him to others. But it seemed Tashigi wanted him to find his way himself. Well, apparently they were on the other side of the base or something, so he would start his search over there.

* * *

Tashigi had hurried straight over to the dock where Shino's has his newly purchased boat anchored. Thankfully, he had yet to depart, and everyone was still gathered around it.

"I'm glad you made it," Nojiko said cheerfully upon seeing her. "I was beginning to think you weren't coming."

"I saw Naruto's ghost!" she declared loudly. "He was in the graveyard."

Nojiko and Kiba looked shocked, but Shino, as unphased as ever, responded first.

"I believe that perhaps you should get some rest," Shino told her. "I believe the emotional strain you've been going through is getting to you."

"I know what I saw," Tashigi snapped back. "I even talked to him."

"I believe you think you did," Shino replied. "However, when under enough stress, the mind is known to conjure up its own events. It's really nothing to be ashamed of given what you've been through."

"I'm not hallucinating," Tashigi insisted angrily. "In fact, Karl saw the ghost before I did, and he barely even knew Naruto."

Shino didn't seem prepared for this information and paused to consider it.

"You said you talked to Naruto, so what did he have to say?" Nojiko asked.

"He told me there's something he hasn't forgiven Kiba for yet," she replied.

"Me?" Kiba asked in surprise, "What does he have to be angry with me about?"

"It was your mother who started the whole challenge that got him killed," Nojiko answered. "And you did just sit back and do as she told you rather than helping him."

"Hey, if those are the reasons it should be my mother he's mad at, not me," Kiba insisted.

"Look, _I'm _not the one blaming you," Nojiko replied. "I know it's not your fault. But Naruto is mad at you about something, and spirits may not even think the same way as they did when they were alive."

"And since he is blaming you, you'll be coming with me," Tashigi told him, letting a hint of threat into her voice.

"There's no need to force me," Kiba assured her. "I still don't really understand why he's mad at me. But he's my best friend. If there's something he needs to work out before he can move on, then I'm not going to run away scared."

"You may want to hold off on that for a little while," Nojiko suggested. "There's no telling what his spirit may do. I think we should try to find a way to exorcise him first, rather than sacrifice someone to appease him."

"Naruto wouldn't kill me," Kiba replied, but didn't sound terribly convinced of his own words.

"You're all accepting this too quickly," Shino interjected. "I'm sure there's a much more reasonable explanation than having Naruto's ghost haunting the base."

"If there's a better explanation then why don't you explain it to us," Tashigi fired back.

It was beginning to grate on her nerves that Shino refused to accept what she'd seen herself. That he was more prepared to believe she was going crazy than in the possibility she was right.

"I already have a theory, in fact," Shino told her. "There is a pirate by the name of Bon Kurei who is known to have the power to mimic the appearance and voices of others."

"But he was captured already," Nojiko pointed out.

"So we were told," Shino acknowledged. "However, the possibility remains that he escaped. Also, he may never have been captured in the first place"

"Are you suggesting the report was falsified?" Tashigi questioned him, further perturbed by the fact that he was now impugning the integrity of the marines.

"That is possible as well," Shino answered. "But my thoughts were more directed at the fact that there's no way to be certain the face associated with Bon Kurei was his original face. He may have disguised himself as one one of his own men in advance. Thus he would be prepared to use his subordinate to fake his own capture should it become necessary."

"And what would he even be doing in the base?" Tashigi queried, determined to do what she could to tear down his theory.

She was certain that was really Naruto; it just had to be. She refused to believe it was some pirate in disguise that she had conversed with.

"I can only speculate his motivation," Shino said. "And it is only a theory. However, I believe it more prudent to investigate natural explanations before accepting supernatural ones."

"Well, you can investigate your natural explanations on your own," Tashigi snapped. "I'm taking Kiba back to Naruto."

Grabbing Kiba's arm she began to march off back in the direction of the graveyard. She'd show Shino who was right here.

* * *

Having been left by his less rational companions to investigate on his own, Shino had begun by questioning those on the dock. And his course of action proved fruitful as he determined that a person matching Naruto's description had been seen departing from a particular ship.

And as unlikely as Shino found it that ghosts existed, he considered it even less probable that one would charter a boat to take him to the base. So for now he would investigate this ship and see if it had any connection to Bon Kurei.

When he was near the vessel in question, Shino used his power to create a single insect which he willed to fly up and onto the ship. As long as it remained close to his position, he would be able to see and hear what was going on in its immediate area.

There were a few men wandering around, but the ship wasn't exactly bustling with activity at the moment. Ideally he should find some way to get one of the crew alone for questioning. For that purpose, he sent the insect around the ship in an attempt to locate a potential target.

It didn't take long for him to find one. In the aft area of the ship there was a door that led to a small storage area. Inside was a single man who seemed to be frantically searching for something. Checking the deck to the ship, he found the area around the door conveniently absent of anyone else.

Transforming his whole body, he flew along the side of the ship, just below the edge until he was near the door. Then, as quickly as he could, he had the swarm fly under the door. The man had his back turned, and hadn't noticed Shino yet. Taking advantage of that fact, Shino reformed behind the man and pulled out a knife.

"Don't make a sound," he ordered as he pressed his weapon to the man's neck.

His target stiffened but complied, not attempting to struggle. Meanwhile, he compelled the single insect he'd used to locate this room to watch outside the door in case anyone else came this way.

"Does the name Bon Kurei mean anything to you?" he asked.

"I've never heard that name," the man insisted nervously. "I don't know what you're after but I'm sure I don't have anything to do with it."

"Let's take another approach," Shino suggested. "I know there was a man on board your ship. He had spiky blond hair and stood about six feet tall. Tell me everything you know about him."

"Yeah, I know who you're talking about," his captive answered. "But he went by the name of Naruto. He came aboard a few weeks ago. He's really strong and spends a lot of time with the boss, so I assumed he was some kind of hired muscle."

Shino considered the man's words. It was possible that the fake Naruto's true identity, whether Bon Kurei as he suspected or someone else, wasn't known to the crew. Not that he was going to assume his captive was telling the truth.

Shino was prepared to press for further information when the insect he'd left outside the door spotted someone approaching. Not having time to do much else, he sent a precise blow to the back of the man's neck leaving him unconscious.

As he saw the young man had nearly reached the room, he knew he wouldn't have time to hide his captive's body. But he was able to hide himself just in time before the door opened. Shino decided not to attack the man as he entered, as he might give something away if he didn't realize Shino was watching.

As soon as the dark-haired young man entered, he spotted the unmoving form and hurried over to it. Oddly enough, he paused to stomp his foot against the floor before leaning down to check for a pulse. After examining the fallen man for a few more moments he stood up.

"The body seems to have lost consciousness only moments before I entered," he stated. "Which means that you're still in the room somewhere."

It looked as if he would have to take this man captive after all. Hopefully he would provide more useful information than his companion had. Now he just had to find an opportune moment to make his move.

"Furthermore," the young man continued, "there's only one spot in this room that a person can hide in. I know this because I used it myself recently."

As he'd been speaking, the man had pulled out a gun and walked over to a barrel in a corner of the room. Stomping his foot a second time, he then shoved the barrel aside. But of course no one was there.

Shino used this opportunity to fly down from where he had been hiding in the shadows of the roof and reform behind the man, knife pressed to his neck.

"Drop the gun," he ordered. "Then tell me everything you know about this Naruto you've been traveling with."

"Not even going to ask my name before you interrogate me?" the man asked, but did toss the gun into a stack of cloth a short distance away. "It's Shikamaru by the way."

As soon as he'd finished his words he stomped his foot on the ground a third time.

"Do that again and I'll kill you," he threatened. "The same if you make any other unnecessary noise in an attempt to alert help."

"If you say so," Shikamaru answered.

Shino, however, couldn't shake the feeling that something wasn't right. If he was hoping someone would hear it and investigate, why had he done it upon entering rather than simply calling for help? He hadn't made any secret the fact that he knew someone was in there.

Was it simply an odd habit of his? Perhaps some part of a devil fruit power? He couldn't think of any other explanations. Although, now that he considered it, the stomping of his foot had been spaced at somewhat regular intervals.

That was it! It wasn't an attempt to signal someone to help. He was telling someone listening for that sound not to take action. And he'd just ordered Shikamaru to stop. Trying to do a quick calculation in his head, he believed it was just about time for the next signal as well.

Taking a risk he stomped his own foot on the ground, but still looked around cautiously, knowing there was a distinct possibility something was about to burst through a wall. After a few seconds he almost was almost prepared to conclude any immediate danger had passed when he heard two more stomps in rapid succession.

He'd let himself become distracted and Shikamaru had just sent off a signal. But before he could react, a hand shot up through the floor and latched onto his leg. He then found himself being pulled downward forcefully enough that the floor beneath him shattered, leaving nothing to prevent him from falling.

As he and Shikamaru fell, Shino released his captive and activated his devil fruit power, which would hopefully protect him from whatever assault his attacker might use next.

"Shino, what are you doing here?" his attacker asked.

It appeared he'd found the person in question, and he was still trying to keep up the act that he was Naruto.

"I still say that plan was too complicated," the blond doppelganger told the fallen Shikamaru. "You're lucky I remembered what all your signals meant."

"It worked, didn't it?" Shikamaru replied, slowly picking himself up.

"There's no point in trying to fool me," Shino told the man. "I saw Naruto's corpse myself."

"I left a corpse?" the Naruto lookalike asked. "That's kind of weird. Oh, but I'm not actually dead. When Blackbeard killed my body, a clone I left behind on an island that we'd visited suddenly became solid. So now I'm as good as new."

Shino had seen strange enough devil fruit abilities that he wouldn't completely discount the possibility. But he wasn't going to accept it without further proof either.

"Who was I with when we first met each other?" Shino queried.

"Uchiha Sasuke," the alleged Naruto answered.

"And what's my father's name?" Shino inquired.

"That's not fair!" he shouted back. "You never told me that."

"Correct," Shino declared. "Very well, if you demonstrate your power to me, I'll believe your story."

"I'm actually a clone, the real me is somewhere on the base right now," he answered. "Is disappearing going to be enough to satisfy you?"

"It will," Shino assured him.

"Good," he answered before vanishing in a puff of smoke.

Shino had to admit, he was pleased the situation had worked out so unexpectedly well. He had come to have no small amount of respect for Naruto. Not to mention how much this news would mean to the rest of the young marine's crew. But for now, there was one issue that was bothering him.

"What gave away my presence prior to your entering the room," Shino asked Shikamaru. "You must have known I was there if you were able to plan out those signals."

"Let's just say that there are very few people on this ship who will keep our boss waiting when they have orders to bring her something as quickly as possible," he answered. "I wasn't certain anything was wrong, but it seemed odd enough to plan ahead just in case."

"I believe I was in there less than a minute prior to your arrival," Shino informed him. "Although now that you mention it, he did appear to be searching for something quite frantically."

"So he just couldn't find the documents?" Shikamaru asked. "It looks like I may have actually had a lucky break for once."

Upon saying so he looked up at the hole in the ceiling and frowned.

"Actually, I guess not," he answered with a sigh. "Ino's still going to kill me when she sees that."

"Considering this my caused by my misconceptions, I will compensate you for the repair costs," Shino promised.

"I appreciate it," Shikamaru answered, thought not sounding too cheered by his offer. "It'll make Ino somewhat more bearable. Anyway, should I expect any of your friends to show up and cause another commotion?"

"It's improbable," Shino replied. "I believe they have other plans."

* * *

They hadn't found Naruto's ghost at the graveyard. Kiba might have begun to doubt Tashigi's story if it weren't for the number of witnesses who had seen him moving about the base. So the two of them had been running around questioning people as they tried to track down a wandering spirit.

Akamaru was trailing behind the two of them of them, even if he couldn't be much help with the investigation. He did catch his partner sniffing the ground in confusion several times. As smart as Akamaru was, it seemed that concepts such as ghosts and how they don't leave behind a scent behind might be too much for an animal to comprehend.

Kiba would try to explain it to him later, but for now he was focused on finding Naruto. He had just about put Akamaru out of his mind again, when the dog let out a bark and started running down an alley between two buildings in the complex. Maybe he'd spotted Naruto's ghost?

Hoping that was the case, Kiba set off after him, noticing Tashigi giving pursuit as well. As he came to the end of the alley and followed Akamaru around the corner, he found himself staring at a face he'd never expected to see again.

"Kiba, Akamaru," Naruto's ghost said. "I was looking for you."

Kiba had come to a stop so suddenly upon seeing Naruto that Tashigi crashed right into his back as she went around the corner herself, sending them both tumbling to the ground.

"And good to see you again, Tashigi," Naruto added. "You ran off so suddenly the first time."

Kiba quickly recovered and got back to his feet before attempting to drudge up the will to go ahead with what he'd planned to do.

"I heard you're upset with me over what happened," Kiba declared. "Well, I'm not going to run. So punish me however you see fit if it will help you get over it."

"As long as you're offering," Naruto said, making a show of cracking his knuckles.

Akamaru, meanwhile was trying to get Kiba's attention, but he shoved his partner aside, doing his best to ignore him. He was already having second thoughts about this and didn't need Akamaru adding to his concerns by trying to convince him not to go through with it.

What exactly would a ghost do for revenge anyway? Suck his soul right out of his body? Fill his mind with countless horrors until he was driven mad? His imagination was running rampant and each idea seemed more terrifying then the last.

"Wait!" a voice called out.

It took him a moment to recognize Nojiko as the person who'd cried out considering the outfit she was wearing. She had on some sort of red skirt that went down to her ankles. It was tied around a white shirt or jacket of some sort with long and very baggy sleeves. In one hand she held a book and in the other she had what appeared to be a branch of some type with pieces of paper tied to it.

"What are you wearing?" Naruto asked, proving that even a ghost could be shocked by that outfit.

"Hold on a moment," Nojiko answered flipping through the book. "I'm still reading up on how to do this exorcism."

"Exorcism?" He asked in confusion. "But I'm ..."

He wasn't able to finish his sentence as Akamaru chose that moment to tackle him, knocking Naruto flat on his back. He then proceeded to lick the fallen spirit's face excitedly. But how was that even possible to do to a ghost? They weren't supposed to be solid.

"That's enough, Akamaru," Naruto insisted, finally managing to free himself from under the large dog and stand up. "As I was saying, I'm not dead, so you don't need an exorcism."

Akamaru, meanwhile, was giving Kiba a look that clearly said, 'I told you so.' That must have been what Akamaru had been trying to tell him.

"How can you be alive?" Tashigi questioned in disbelief. "We saw you die. They even buried your body."

"It seems one of my clones got left behind on an island we'd visited," Naruto answered. "When Blackbeard killed me, the clone somehow became solid and gained all of my memories."

"You're really alive then?" Nojiko asked. "Why didn't you contact us before now? There must have been some way you could have contacted us sooner. Do you even know what we've been through?"

Kiba suddenly had a strong suspicion he knew where this was going.

"That was all in the past," Kiba interjected as nonchalantly as he could manage. "We should just forget about that and be glad Naruto is okay."

"You'd like that, wouldn't you," Naruto said. "Considering that when I called to tell you I was alive, you wouldn't listen and hung up on me."

"Is that true?" Nojiko asked as she sent a glare his way.

"He's taking it out of context," Kiba replied defensively. "It sounded like some bad prank. I mean would you believe it if someone called up claiming to be a person you'd recently seen die?"

Kiba was saved, however, by an unlikely source, as Tashigi marched up to Naruto and started beating on his chest.

"Don't ever worry us like that again!" she ordered.

After doing so she seemed to just break down or something as Kiba could hear her sobbing. She also ceased her assault on Naruto's chest and simply leaned up against it instead. For his part, Naruto looked stricken, as if he didn't have a clue what do. Finally he hesitantly moved an arm around to pat her on the back a few times in an attempt to comfort her.

"You did put us through a lot, you big dummy," Nojiko added, walking up to their side and grabbing both Tashigi and Naruto in a firm hug.

Kiba was getting quite jealous at Naruto's close proximity to two hot women. Although he quickly realized, there was no reason he couldn't take advantage of this situation. Smiling to himself he walked over toward the three of them.

"Group hug," he called out making sure to position himself between the two girls as he reached his arms out.

But he was brought up short by a sudden impact to his face. After taking a moment to clear the stars from his eyes, he saw Naruto pulling back his fist.

"What was that for?" he protested.

"You said I could do whatever I wanted to you," Naruto answered. "So I did."

"That was when I thought you were dead!" Kiba complained.

He then realized he'd missed his opportunity as Nojiko and Tashigi had just pulled away from Naruto to see what was going on.

"Anyway, it seems Shino has been busy as well," Naruto declared. Why don't we go meet up with him? Then we can all catch up on everything that's happened."

* * *

They'd barely had time to collect Shino before a messenger from Kakashi had come to get them. So Naruto and his crew now found themselves sitting with the rear admiral around a table.

"It's good to see you're still alive," Kakashi told him. "Although I must admit, you've caused quite a stir today. It'll probably be weeks before this whole ghost scare dies down."

"Sorry about that," Naruto apologized. "Anyway, before I forget, I kind of promised I'd try to set up a meeting between you and the captain of the ship that took me here."

"That shouldn't be a problem," Kakashi assured him. "I don't get to socialize much outside of the marines, so it should be a nice change of pace."

Naruto doubted a meeting with Ino could ever be considered a nice change of pace. Maybe a nice change of pace from Impel Down, but he wasn't even certain of that. Anyway, he'd keep that to himself for now.

"I must say," Kakashi continued, "I've never seen anyone fake their own death quite so impressively even when they were trying to. You had your own crew completely fooled."

Yeah, Naruto had to remind himself, that as bad as it was for him when he didn't know whether or not his crew was alive, it must have been even worse for them. They'd been quite certain he was dead after all. Although that did make him think of another possibility.

"You didn't tell anyone back on Leaf Island that I was dead, did you?" he asked Kakashi.

"Ah, yes," Kakashi answered. "There was a standard notification of death. I believe it went out yesterday. I'll make sure to send a correction."

"Actually, if you don't mind, I'd like to go myself," Naruto proposed. "I have an eternal pose to Leaf Island back on our ship, so I should be able to arrive before the letter."

"I think that can be arranged," Kakashi told him. "There's going to be a lot of paperwork just to get you listed as alive again. And it might look a little odd to my superiors if I assign a dead officer to a mission. I'll call you if something comes up, but until then, I guess you can consider this shore leave."

"So we get to see your home town?" Kiba asked Naruto. "Sound fun."

"If you're looking for fun I think you'll be disappointed," Naruto replied. "The town is hardly worthy of the name. It's more a handful of buildings that happen to be situated somewhat close to each other. There's really isn't much to do."

"Even small towns can have their charm," Nojiko interjected, a little defensively.

"I suppose they can," Naruto agreed. "Most of my life I wanted nothing more than to get out of there. But now I actually find myself looking forward to seeing it again."

* * *

**AN**

I hope this chapter doesn't seem too disappointing after the last one. But not all of chapters will have twists as big as that one did. Some of them, but certainly not all. This one I was going for a more humor centric tone, while still advancing the plot.

Anyway, the whole crew is back together again and ready to sail off on new adventures. I strongly encourage you to leave me a review to let me know what you did and/or didn't like. I try to answer any questions as well, even if just to say "I'm not telling."


	13. Chapter 13

**Note:** A few reviewers for the last chapter pointed out, quite accurately, that the scene where Naruto's crew discover he's alive wasn't quite as good as it should have been. So I actually went back and extended it a bit shortly before posting this chapter.

There's no major plot changes, so there's no need to reread it. But if you want to, you can search for 'He's taking it out of context' and read from there until the end of that scene. I think it's at least a little better now.

**End Note**

As much as he knew it hadn't been very long at all, it felt like ages since Naruto had last been sailing aboard his ship. So it was a good feeling to be doing so now. Most of his crew had been treating him oddly since their departure. He frequently caught them just watching him, or one of his clones of if they lost track of which one was the real one.

Shino was the one exception, acting as quiet and aloof as ever. Thankfully the novelty must have worn off for the rest of crew as the afternoon began to fade into evening. Things were now settling into a more normal routine. So he was using a moment of peaceful respite to think on other matters.

His impending visit to Leaf Island for example. If it seemed like ages since he'd been on this ship, his more than a year away from home felt like a whole other lifetime. But he'd certainly be coming back in style. He was already a captain in the marines. That had been an exceedingly pleasant surprise when Kakashi had let that little piece of news slip.

He had to wonder if he had some sort of record for the fastest rise through the ranks up to captain. He still wasn't certain if he'd get to keep the rank. But for now, that was his rank, and Naruto was not going to miss the chance to boast about it.

Actually, the rank did bring up the memory of a particular bet he had made. Seeing as he'd won the bet, Naruto felt it was time to collect. He had no trouble finding Kiba, who was training with Akamaru only a short distance away.

"I believe our bet was for three months' wages," Naruto told him.

Kiba immediately stopped in his tracks and turned to face him. Naruto was pleased to see that he was a looking a little nervous.

"Oh come on," Kiba complained. "This hardly counts. Your promotion was just a mistake because they thought you were dead."

"I didn't think you were the type who cared so little about your word that you would try to weasel out of it," Naruto quipped.

That put Kiba at a loss for words. As much as he'd be loathe to do so, the other marine would have little choice but to concede his loss now.

"Fine," Kiba finally answered. "You'll get your stupid money."

"Actually," Naruto answered, "don't worry about it. A lieutenant's salary is so much less than a captain's that it's hardly worth it."

Kiba's obvious fuming convinced him his decision had been the right one. It was worth giving up the money he'd have won in the bet for this show.

"You laugh now but we're visiting your home town," Kiba declared. "I'm sure I can find all sorts of embarrassing stories about you. So maybe you should think twice about giving me any more reason to seek them out."

That threat caught Naruto's attention. Kiba wouldn't really go so far to humiliate him would he? Actually, if provoked enough, he might just do that. Yes, it would be in his best interest to take this threat seriously.

"There's no need for that, I'm just kidding around," Naruto said placatingly. "Don't tell me you wouldn't do the same if you had won the bet. And I didn't go digging for dirt when I met your mother and sister."

"I suppose you're right," Kiba said much more calmly, then actually getting a smirk. "Besides, you were kind enough to say I didn't have to pay you back. Anyway, Akamaru and I should get back to our training, so thanks again for the generosity."

It was now Naruto's turn to quietly fume as Kiba turned his back to him and returned to training. Somehow Kiba had ended up getting the better of that exchange, and that didn't sit well with him. Even if Kiba did behave himself on Leaf Island, Naruto silently vowed that if he ever saw Kiba's mother again he'd all but interrogate her for the most humiliating stories she had of Kiba.

Actually, recalling his one brief encounter with the woman he quickly revised his oath. If he ever saw Kiba's sister again he would ask her. Yeah, that sounded like a much wiser decision. Lost in his thoughts, Naruto didn't even notice Tashigi until she cleared her throat behind him to get his attention.

"Oh, it is about time for our training session, isn't it?" Naruto asked, seeing the wooden swords she was carrying.

"I know you must be pretty busy since getting back," Tashigi replied. "But it really would be helpful if we could continue our training."

"It's not a problem at all," Naruto answered cheerfully. "To be honest, I've kind of missed these sessions."

It would be a nice change of pace at the very least. So he took three of the training swords Tashigi was holding out and distributed two of them to clones he had just beckoned over.

"Great," she responded. "I hadn't been able to find anyone else to spar with."

"Well then, let's get started and see if you've gotten rusty," he told her, backing up to create some space.

Seeing she had taken a defensive stance, he nodded and charged in. He'd take it a little slow at first to give Tashigi a chance to warm up. Moving in he took a swing that she was easily able to parry. That was when he saw something that surprised him. One of his clones had used his distraction to circle around behind her and was coming in very quickly.

It seemed to have a difference of opinions on holding back, something he rarely had with his clones considering they thought alike. It made him wonder what that clone had been doing today that had it so worked up. But his clone's attempt at surprise was ultimately futile. In the brief moment he'd been considering his clone's motivation, Tashigi had already spun around.

Ducking under the incoming attack, she retaliated fiercely, slicing into the clone's waist and destroying it completely. Naruto was stunned by the speed she'd just exhibited, as it had been significantly faster than anything he'd ever seen from her.

His remaining clone was just as surprised, and halted it's own attack, deciding instead to get some distance and think up a new strategy. But Tashigi didn't give it the time to do so, charging after the backpedaling clone and engaging it.

His clone parried the first strike, but being outmatched in pure swordplay, quickly found itself disarmed in the following assault. However, rather than finish it, she simply pulled back and returned to a defensive stance.

"Wow, you've improved a lot since we last sparred," Naruto said in a tone that made it clear how impressed he was.

"Well, I've been training pretty hard lately," she said, almost seeming more embarrassed than proud. "It would be pretty shameful if I didn't see a little improvement."

Naruto would hardly call that a little improvement. And to think he'd wanted to go easy on her. He was tempted to show off some of the fruits of his own training so as not to be outdone. But he resisted the urge. This training was for her benefit, not his. Besides, he didn't have it quite at the level he wanted yet. Still, he was looking forward to the day he did reveal his new secret move.

But that day wasn't today, so for now he'd just focus on Tashigi's sword training. Summoning a new clone, it and the surviving one picked up the now fallen training weapons. He may be sticking with swordplay, but he wasn't about to be humiliated. From now on Tashigi would see just how difficult fighting three of him at once was when he took their sparring seriously.

* * *

Jiraiya was woken from his slumber by the persistent calling of a young marine standing by the side of his bed. After a few moments effort, he cleared his mind enough actually to actually to sit up and respond coherently.

"Have we arrived at Leaf Island yet?" Jiraiya asked.

"No, sir," the marine answered. "But you have an urgent call from headquarters."

"Then tell them I'll call them back in the morning," he ordered, lying back down to return to his rudely interrupted sleep.

"But sir," his subordinate insisted, "it's Fleet Admiral Sengoku himself calling."

"Fine," Jiraiya answered grumpily getting up out of his bed and leaving his room.

It better be a huge emergency for Sengoku to call him in the middle of the night. Otherwise, superior officer or not, there would be some less than pleasant words said between them. It didn't take him long to reach the ship's den den mushi and answer the call.

"This is Jiraiya," he announced. "What do you need?"

"We recently lost contact with G-9 base," Sengoku informed him. "Our last communication from them indicated an unidentified pirate ship was heading their way. I want you to investigate what happened there."

"I'm kind of busy," Jiraiya answered. "Can't you send Garp or something? Chasing down pirates that can take out a marine base sounds like something he'd enjoy."

"I've already tried Garp," Sengoku replied. "He's off doing some crazy mission he's assigned himself. He refuses to tell me what it is or listen to a word I say. You know how little chance their is of talking any sense into him. So you're the only person I can spare who I trust to do this."

"Fine," Jiraiya conceded, none too happily. "I'll do it."

"Good," Sengoku responded. "I'll call you back if I have any further information. Good luck."

With the conversation over, Jiraiya began to mull over his plans. The first thing he was going to do was make sure Sengoku couldn't follow through on his threat to call back. Jiraiya was willing to hold off on his trip to Leaf Island, but he wasn't about to be woken up a second time this night.

So instead he was going to make use of a little trick he'd picked up. To start with, he called a den den mushi he kept in his home on Marinford. This particularly den den mushi was trained to accept all incoming calls even without someone picking up the receiver.

Once it was connected, he carefully set the receiver on his end down crooked, confirming that the connection hadn't been broken. There, now there was no risk of a second call. He'd fix it in the morning, after he finished his sleep. He almost hoped Sengoku did try calling again before then.

* * *

It felt so odd to be looking at the familiar island again. As much as he hadn't had any real plans to ever come back here, he found himself hurrying through the process of docking the ship. Soon enough the work was finished and he was ready to depart. His whole crew was present with him on the deck and he turned to address them.

"There's not exactly much to do on the island," Naruto told them, "And since it's still morning the tavern won't even be open yet. But you're welcome to come along if you'd like."

"Even if there isn't anything to do it beats staying cooped up on the ship," Kiba proclaimed.

The rest of his crew seemed to share Kiba's sentiments, so they all disembarked the ship where he saw a familiar face smoking a cigarette.

"I thought I spotted you on the ship, Naruto," Asuma told him as he approached the man. "I see you made it as a marine after all, congratulations."

"Thanks, I've actually made it all the way to captain," Naruto said proudly, pointing to his officer's jacket he'd made sure to wear today.

"You're not pulling my leg are you?" Asuma asked dubiously.

"No, I'm dead serious," Naruto insisted.

"Well now, that certainly is impressive," Asuma replied. "It can't have been much more than a year since you left. Even your father didn't rise through the ranks that quickly."

"Well he probably never thought to get himself stabbed in the chest," Kiba muttered.

"Kiba!" Nojiko berated from next to him.

"Stabbed in the chest?" Asuma queried.

"Ah, ... um ... Kiba's just kidding around," Naruto claimed. "Although it's kind of the reason I came here. There was just a bit of a mix up with some paperwork, and a letter is being sent here claiming I was killed. I just wanted to let everyone know that wasn't true so you wouldn't worry."

"Well, I'm glad you got here first," Asuma told him. "That letter would have left a few people pretty distraught."

"Boss! Boss!" a voice called out.

If it weren't for the fact that no one else would call him 'Boss', Naruto might not have recognized Konohamaru's voice. It had deepened since he last seen the young teen. And as Konohamaru ran up to them, he could tell that the boy had grown considerably as well. He'd barely been five feet tall before, but now he looked to have added another 5 or 6 inches to that.

"You really did it," Konohamaru said excitedly when he reached him. "What rank are you? Is that your crew? Are you captain of that ship?"

"Slow down," Naruto told him, hoping to get a chance to answer his questions. "My rank is captain and this is my crew. This is Nojiko, Tashigi, Shino, Kiba, and Akamaru."

"Nice to meet you all," Konohamaru greeted cheerfully. "Can I join your crew too?"

"No you may not," Asuma said. "You're staying on this island."

"That's not fair!" Konohamaru complained. "Naruto got leave."

"It's probably okay for Naruto, but you definitely can't go," Asuma insisted.

"What do you mean it's probably okay for me?" Naruto asked. "No one ever told me anything like that before."

"That's not really my place to say," Asuma replied. "Anyway, you can hardly blame the villagers for being worried, I admit I'm not entirely comfortable with it myself."

Naruto was still curious as to what Asuma was talking about. So he wasn't about to let the man sidetrack him after tickling his curiosity.

"Well, do you know where the old man is?" Naruto asked. "Maybe he'll tell me what you're talking about."

"Your first time back in over a year and the person you ask to see is my father?" Asuma questioned him. "Don't you think there's someone else you should be asking for instead?"

"Don't worry, I already told Sakura I'd spotted you before I came here," Konohamaru informed him.

"Why did you do that?" Naruto demanded of him, grabbing him by the shirt.

"Why wouldn't I?" Konohamaru asked, seemingly unconcerned by his treatment.

"Who is Sakura?" Tashigi interrupted to ask.

"That's her right there," Konohamaru answered pointing back to the center of the island.

Naruto could see the pink haired young woman marching toward them, and could tell that she might just be a little bit upset with him. That's exactly what he'd been worried about when he'd complained to Konohamaru. Really, she got angry far too easily. Half the time he didn't even know why.

But with all the time she'd had to come up with something he'd done wrong, he'd been sure she'd think of something. Naruto had yet to come up with any ideas to placate her when she'd reached the small gathering. As soon as she did she marched straight up to him and stuck a finger in his chest.

"Why didn't you tell me you were leaving?" she asked accusingly.

"I did tell you!" Naruto insisted defensively, hoping that for once she'd listen to reason.

"But you'd claimed you were leaving dozens of times before," Sakura fired back. "You didn't tell me you were actually going to leave that time."

"I certainly tried," Naruto countered. "It's not my fault you didn't believe me."

"Even if that's true," she replied, "In all this time you've never even sent one letter?"

"I've been really busy," Naruto told her, somehow knowing himself that excuse wasn't likely to work.

"Really?" Kiba asked. "I've been with you most of the time since you left and I found plenty of time to write letters home."

Kiba was really asking for it lately. His fist involuntarily clenched in response to his desire to teach Kiba a lesson in holding his tongue. But he had to think fast.

"Anyway, isn't visiting better than writing a letter?" he asked hopefully.

"Maybe if you'd done it a little sooner," Sakura answered.

"I agree that at least writing would have been the proper thing to do," a new voice added.

The sudden appearance of the old man in right next to Naruto and Sakura came as quite a surprise to his crew. Tashigi seemed especially startled, jumping back in response. Unfortunately for her and Nojiko, the space behind her was already occupied, sending the two female members of his crew crashing to the ground.

Despite being closer to where the mayor had come from, the four other natives to the island reacted much more calmly. They'd been around the elderly mayor long enough to get used to his eccentricities.

"Where did you come from?" Tashigi demanded of the old man as she stood, doing her best to maintain some dignity after the fall.

"Just around," he answered. "I guess you were pretty distracted if you didn't even notice an old man like myself hobble over this way."

"I find it difficult to believe it was a simple observational error that allowed you to get this close unnoticed," Shino countered.

"He was hiding behind those crates over there all along," Asuma told them. "My father just takes a perverse pleasure from surprising people like that."

"And grandpa may be really, really, really old, but he's actually incredibly fast," Konohamaru added.

"I'm not that old," the mayor muttered in annoyance. "And you'd think my own family wouldn't have to spoil my fun. Anyway, I'm the mayor of this village, Sarutobi Hiruzen."

"Pleased to meet you," Nojiko replied, having climbed back to her feet herself. "I just hope you make any future meetings a little less dramatic."

"I would actually be interested in seeing him enter in that manner again," Shino interjected. "If he can surprise us so easily, our enemies could as well. So I'd appreciate a chance to test suitable countermeasures."

"There's no need to practice that," Kiba declared. "Now that Akamaru knows his scent, he'll tell us if he's hiding in the area, right Akamaru?"

The dog quickly barked his assent to claim, looking quite proud of himself.

"That still won't be of use if anyone whose scent he doesn't know surprises us in a similar manner," Shino countered. "So I still think we should come up with a solution to prepare for such a situation."

"Now now, there's no need to argue over this," Sarutobi said, as if he wasn't enjoying every second of it. "But to get to the point, I believe you had a question for me. If your friends don't mind me taking you away for a few minutes, I actually wanted to discuss that very thing, among other matters with you."

"I don't mind if they come with," Naruto told him. "They're my crew, and I trust them all."

"Nevertheless, some of this is very private matters of the village," Sarutobi replied. "I'd prefer to discuss them only with you."

"What's with all the secrecy?" Asuma asked. "I don't think it's really all that private."

"That's because even you don't know everything I'm planning to discuss with him," his father answered.

Now Naruto really had to know what was going on. Some village secret even Asuma didn't know?

"I'm going to go with the old man," he told his crew. "You guys will have to find something to do until I get back."

With that he began to follow Sarutobi back to his house. Sakura fell into step beside him, a fact that was quickly noticed by the elderly mayor.

"I said I wanted to speak with Naruto in private," he told her.

"Well, I'm not done with him yet," Sakura replied sharply. "And I'm a member of this village as well. If you can tell Naruto, you should be able to tell me."

"I don't mind if Sakura comes," Naruto added, hoping his support might help win his way back into her good graces.

"Fine," Sarutobi answered with a sigh. "I suppose it won't hurt anything at that."

It was only a short walk to Sarutobi's house. There they entered into the room that served as his office and shut the door behind them. The old man motioned for them to seat themselves in a couple of chairs he had near his desk, an offer they both accepted.

For his part, Sarutobi remained standing, pacing slowly in front of them as if having second thoughts about this whole conversation. Naruto, however, had little patience for any stalling.

"So why did Asuma say it'd probably be alright for me to leave the island?" Naruto asked, hoping to jolt him into action.

"Oh, that question is an easy one to answer," Sarutobi replied. "It's because you weren't born on this island, so he doesn't think the curse applies to you."

"What?" Naruto replied in shock. "Why didn't anyone ever tell me that?"

"They were afraid it would only further encourage you to leave," he answered. "And the villagers worried that with how long you'd lived here, you might be under the curse after all."

"If he wasn't born on the island, then where was he born?" Sakura chimed in to ask.

"I don't know," Sarutobi answered. "I don't even know who his mother is. Minato just showed up with a baby one day and asked me to take care of him while he was gone. He wouldn't ever speak about who Naruto's mother was. If not for the undeniable family resemblance, I might even wonder if Naruto really was his son."

"Hah, well this information will be great if anyone tries to complain about my leaving," Naruto said cheerfully.

"It really doesn't make any difference," Sarutobi told him. "After all, the curse isn't real."

"What do you mean by that?" Sakura queried. "I thought the incident with Naruto's father proved it was."

"I keep saying, if it was the curse why did it happen years later?" Naruto asked.

"What happened to your father really is the root of the story," the old man continued. "There's more to that day than what you've been told."

"I already managed to get the truth from the villagers years ago," Naruto interrupted. "It wasn't really pirates like we told the marines. I know all about the entrance to the forbidden cave collapsing, the strange noises from inside, and my father arriving just as the rubble was finished being cleared away. Then he went inside, the noises stopped."

Naruto had to pause a second before continuing. As nonchalant as he was trying to be, it wasn't easy to speak of his father's death.

"But my father never came out," Naruto continued. "Which the villagers claim is proof of the curse. It was satisfied that he sacrificed himself to pay for his crime of leaving the island."

"Well, since you're so sure you know everything, I guess I won't tell you the rest of the story," Sarutobi replied, sounding slightly bitter at being interrupted.

"There's more?" Naruto asked, the old man now having his full attention.

"Yes, because the curse was something made up hundreds of years ago," Sarutobi informed them. "The truth is, our ancestors settled on this island to guard something in the forbidden cave."

"What were they guarding?" Sakura asked, apparently just as engaged in the story as Naruto was himself.

"A mechanical man, actually," he answered. "It was supposed to be a weapon of great power. But our ancestors were afraid of what would happen if others learned where they'd hidden the weapon. They trusted each other, but were worried that someday, one of their children or their children's children would let slip their secret."

"And what does the curse have to do with that?" Naruto asked impatiently.

"I'm getting to that," Sarutobi replied. "They decided it best to keep it a secret to as few people in the village as possible. Usually only one one or two people at a time that were alive knew the truth. But without a purpose, they feared no one would want to stay on this tiny island."

"You've got that right," Naruto mumbled to himself, earning him a glare from Sarutobi.

"So they made up the story of the curse, and the forbidden cave to frighten people into staying behind to guard our secret," Sarutobi continued. "Your father actually knew this as well. I'd told him in hopes that he would succeed me some day. So that brings us back to the day of the incident."

Sarutobi paused in his story, once again looking hesitant to go on. Naruto almost decided to press him to continue again, until he got a glimpse the very solemn look that was now on the old man's face. This time, he decided to wait patiently.

"That night I made the greatest mistake of my life," Sarutobi finally admitted. "I should have gone with your father into that cave. Instead I decided it was more important to continue the village's lie. Only he would be allowed into the cave as he was the one who had left the island."

Naruto could see how hard it was for the old man to tell him this story, and out of respect for the man before him continued to hold his silence even through his pauses. Sakura was being just as respectful, but she'd always been more patient than he was. Except when it came to waiting for a letter, apparently.

"Hours later," Sarutobi went on, "when the sounds had stopped and I was finally able to chase away the rest of the villagers, I entered the cave myself. There I found the broken remains of the machine we had been guarding ... and your father's body. I did at least bury him there in the cave. But I'm so sorry Naruto, if I'd just told the villagers the truth and gone with him he might still be alive."

All of this was a bit much to take in. It might be easy to blame the old man for his father's death. Years ago he might have even done it. But Sarutobi had all but raised him since his father's death. Even before then, he had taken care of Naruto when his father was away with the marines. Besides, what good would blaming him do now?

"You give yourself too much credit old man," Naruto quipped. "You really think a geriatric old has been like you could have done much to help my father?"

"Naruto!" Sakura admonished, elbowing him harshly.

Sarutobi, however, understood the intentions behind the words and did seem somewhat cheered.

"I'm still fit to this day, and I'll have you know I was practically in my prime back then," he replied gruffly.

"Mayor, I do have one question," Sakura told him. "If the thing we were protecting was destroyed, why didn't you tell anyone the truth before now?"

"I was just waiting for the right time to tell everyone they've been lied to and tricked into staying here for generations," he answered. "But as surprising as it may be, such a time never seemed to come."

"Actually, I have something I want to ask you too," Naruto said, recalling a question he'd had since the fight with Blackbeard. "I've gotten pretty good at Tekkai, but there was one fight where someone managed to cut me with a sword when it was active. He didn't even hit me very hard, it was as if there wasn't even any resistance from the technique."

"You were stabbed with a sword?" Sakura asked, interrupting his own question. "What exactly do they have you doing in the marines?"

"It's not as bad as it sounds," Naruto replied nervously. "There's not even a mark left on my body. I was just caught by surprise, that's all."

Sakura for her part looked dubious, but the old man came to his rescue.

"Tell me, did feel anything strange about the man who broke through your Tekkai?" Sarutobi asked.

"Now that you mention it, it almost felt like there was some sort of aura coming from him that was trying to suffocate me or something," he answered.

"I thought so," Sarutobi replied. "I believe you fell victim to Haki."

"What's Haki?" Naruto queried, not having heard the term before.

But it was Sakura who answered him.

"It's an outward manifestation of one's will," she replied. "It can be used to subdue the weak, enhance attacks, and even do damage to those with devil fruit powers that would normally prevent it. The mayor has been teaching me the basics of it, but it's a difficult skill to learn."

"Why did you teach Sakura but not mention anything to me?" Naruto complained to the elderly mayor.

"Maybe because I didn't run away before my training was complete," Sakura declared harshly.

"Sakura's right," Sarutobi answered. "You simply left before I got around to teaching you about it. But you're back now, so how about I give you some pointers to get you started with your training. I'm interested to see how that power you used to escape works as well."

Naruto barely even took note of the chance to show off, his mind was already awhirl with the possibilities this Haki would offer. His fight with Luffy would have taken quite a different course if his punches could wound the young pirate. He wondered if Haki might even let him physically attack a Logia user. Hopefully he'd learn it quickly, because he couldn't wait to put this technique to the test.

* * *

With Naruto currently occupied, Shino had immediately returned to the ship. And as much as Kiba had proclaimed his desire to leave it, the young marine had followed him back. He was currently leaning over the railing next to Shino. Tashigi and Nojiko were standing a short distance away at the prow of the ship, while engaged in a conversation that wasn't quite loud enough for Shino to make out.

Shortly after they'd returned, a couple of male villagers from the island had taken position next to the vessel and had been standing there ever since. It was certainly an odd behavior, and Kiba seemed to have picked up on that as well.

"It's like they're standing guard," Kiba declared. "They really must not trust the marines."

"I don't believe that's it," Shino corrected him. "They're facing away from the ship, as if guarding us from something on the island."

"That doesn't make any sense," Kiba argued. "What exactly would they be guarding us from?"

"Naruto did express concerns that the villagers would not be happy about his departure," Shino reminded him.

"You know, he has mentioned to me that the people of Leaf Island didn't want him to leave," Kiba admitted. "But I always assumed he was exaggerating. You don't think they'd actually try to physically stop him, do you?"

"I don't think we can discount that possibility," Shino replied.

"Well, we can't do much about it until we know more, so let's talk about something else," Kiba suggested, then raised his voice inexplicably before continuing. "Anyway, I'm a bit jealous of Naruto. Having such a cute childhood friend and all to come home to."

He caught Nojiko and Tashigi glancing their way, evidently having overheard Kiba's statement. But if Kiba noticed that fact he wasn't deterred from this line of conversation, nor did he lower his voice back to a more normal level.

"I can only imagine what king of catching up they're doing now that they're away from us," Kiba continued. "I wonder if she's the real reason Naruto hasn't made any moves despite having two good looking women on the crew."

"You may want to lower your voice," Shino suggested quietly.

He could see Kiba definitely had Nojiko and Tashigi's full attention, and Shino saw little chance of this ending well if it continued much further.

"Quiet I'm working here," Kiba whispered back in annoyance, before ignoring his advice and continuing. "Although he tried to tell me he just didn't like older women."

"Old!" Nojiko all but shrieked, marching over to where they stood. "I am not in the least bit old."

Shino was hardly surprised to see this taking a turn for the worse so quickly. Still, he wasn't sure what Kiba was attempting to do. Was he trying to stir up trouble for Naruto for some reason?

"Those were Naruto's words, not mine," Kiba said defensively. "And as young as the both of you are, you're still a few years older than he is. Some guys just prefer women their own age or younger, like Sakura is to Naruto. Besides, I don't see where you have a right to get upset at me when you were eavesdropping."

"Does Naruto really not like older women?" Tashigi asked, having made her way over as well. "I mean just out curiosity."

"Well he said that," Kiba replied. "But he may have just wanted to get me off his back. Most guys don't like sounding like the faithful romantic types in front of other guys. But if there was anything going on between him and Sakura before he left, he might just not have been comfortable trying anything with another girl. That may be true even if he had developed feelings for her."

Kiba paused then as if deep in thought.

"Although there is a way to find out if he likes one of you," he finally said. "If you were to go out with someone else, we could see if he got jealous."

Now Shino understood what Kiba was attempting to do. It was a dirty tactic, but a part of Shino was a little curious to see what would happen next. This could provide a great deal of insight on the rest of the crew, which was valuable information for someone who had to work with them.

"Would that really work?" Tashigi queried.

Then as if just realizing what she'd said, her face took on a faint reddish hue, and she began waving her arms in front of her defensively.

"Not that I'm interested in doing that. This is all hypothetical," she rushed out in a very nervous manner.

Although given her actions, Shino doubted anyone there believed what she was saying.

"Hold on Tashigi," Nojiko interjected. "I think Kiba here is making this up to try to manipulate us."

"Oh come on," Kiba countered. "Don't you think that's a bit of a wild accusation? If you don't like what you heard, maybe you should think twice about listening in on other people's conversations in the future."

"I believe there's a great deal of merit to what Nojiko's suggested," Shino declared, finally having decided to get involved. "Considering that when I suggested you drop that line of conversation you demanded my silence because, 'you were working.'"

Kiba glared at him furiously, clearly considering this a betrayal.

"That was between us guys," he snapped out. "Why would you tell them that?"

In response, Shino leaned in closely as if to impart some secret to Kiba.

"My powers are logia type," he whispered, causing a shocked look on Kiba's face.

Revenge was rarely a logical choice, but Shino had to admit it did create a certain sense of satisfaction at times.

"If this was just a trick, that means the comment about being old was all yours, wasn't it?" Nojiko asked Kiba dangerously.

"Just _older_," Kiba insisted nervously. "It's simple fact that you're older than he is."

"I believe Kiba needs some time to think over what he did," Nojiko suggested. "Maybe a nice swim might do him some good."

"That sounds like a good idea to me," Tashigi agreed, having a dangerous glint in her own eye.

The two of them fanned out, trying to box Kiba in who had his back to the railing. For his part, Shino backed away to observe the proceedings.

"Akamaru, help me," Kiba called out, noticing the large canine watching from a short distance away.

In response, Akamaru rushed over and took position to the left of both young women. Looking grateful, Kiba ran along the edge of the railing, planning to squeeze between it and Akamaru while the dog protected him from his pursuers. But Akamaru moved to block his path and snapped at Kiba, forcing him to jump back to where he started.

"Not you too, Akamaru," Kiba said dejectedly.

With the help of Akamaru, the two young women were quickly able to get ahold of Kiba and toss the struggling marine over the edge of the ship. Tashigi lost her balance in the process, and would have followed him over the railing if Nojiko hadn't grabbed the back of her shirt and pulled her back aboard. After the splash, Shino looked over the railing to see Kiba treading water angrily.

"I may have made some of that stuff up," Kiba admitted. "But Naruto really was excited about seeing Sakura again. In fact, he told me he was going to invite her to join the crew. I bet you there is something going on between them."

Nojiko and Tashigi simply walked away ignoring him. But it quickly became evident by her fidgeting that Kiba's words were bothering Tashigi. In fact, she didn't even last a minute before acting.

"Do you want to go see if Naruto's done talking to the mayor?" Tashigi asked Nojiko.

* * *

"So you're really a captain?" Sakura asked. "You're not just making that up?"

"For the hundredth time, yes," Naruto said in exasperation.

Each time she asked him that, he began to wonder more strongly if he wasn't better off when she was angry with him. But whether in deference to everything the mayor had told him, or some other reason, she seemed to have calmed down after that meeting.

Now the two of them were back at Naruto's house where he was going through his possessions, packing up everything he wanted to take with him. He hadn't been able to take much with him last time, not wanting to be slowed down by extra burdens.

But now he was free to take whatever he wanted. Although to be honest, there really wasn't all that much he was attached to, he realized. Mostly he was just grabbing some clothes and a few mementos of his father and packing them into the chest he'd received that started his whole adventure.

"Aren't you going to take this?" Sakura asked, holding up the gold necklace with a large red gemstone about two inches long she'd just taken down from its place hanging from the wall.

"Good idea," Naruto replied. "That's probably a ruby, and I bet I could get a lot of money for it."

"Naruto!" Sakura called out sharply. "I can't believe you're talking about selling it. Isn't it supposed to be the only thing you have from your mother?"

"Yeah, well, my mother is long dead," Naruto replied. "Since well before I was old enough to remember her. It's not like there's a lot of sentimental value to this."

"How can you be sure she's even dead?" Sakura asked. "Apparently not even the mayor knows anything about her."

"Well she has to be, doesn't she?" Naruto asked. "If she was alive, wouldn't she have come back with my father?"

"Even if that's true, aren't you the least bit curious about who your mother was?" Sakura asked. "This could be a clue to help you find out."

"Wouldn't a picture of it make just as good of a clue as the real thing?" Naruto asked.

Sakura just glared at him silently in response.

"Alright already, I won't sell it," Naruto conceded, putting it around his neck instead, which seemed to mollify her.

Naruto didn't know why she was getting so upset about this in the first place. It wasn't her mother they were talking about.

"Anyway, I was thinking, now that we know the curse isn't real, you should come with me when I leave," he suggested.

"You want me to go with you?" Sakura asked, seemingly caught off guard by the question.

"Yeah," Naruto replied. "Sailing all over the world, going from one adventure to the next. You wouldn't believe how great it can be."

"But I'm not even a marine," Sakura pointed out.

"I already have two members of my crew who aren't marines," Naruto informed her. "I hardly thing adding a third will be an issue. So what do you say?"

"Naruto, my entire life I never even considered the possibility of leaving the island," she told him. "It was something that you just couldn't do. Now the same day I find out that's even an option, you want me to leave my family, and the only home I've ever known to sail off to parts unknown?"

He was interrupted from further making his case by a knock on his door. Naruto hurried over to open it, curious as to who it could be. As the door swung open he was greeted with the sight of Tashigi.

"Ah, good timing," he told her cheerfully. "I was just trying to convince Sakura here to join our crew."

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Tashigi asked as she made her way inside. "It's quite dangerous."

"Is it really that bad?" Sakura asked them.

"Not really," Naruto tried to assure her. "We're all fine after all."

"You should be honest to her about what she's getting into," Tashigi argued. "I mean we've been captured by pirates, fought one of the Shichibukai, not to mention what happened with Blackbeard."

"I should have known you'd find ways to get yourself in trouble," Sakura told him. "Maybe I should come with after all to try to keep you from getting yourself killed."

"Naruto's more than capable of taking care of himself," Tashigi quickly insisted. "But you could be hurt or worse if you came."

In response to that Sakura got a look in her eye that Naruto recognized very well. She wasn't about to just let that statement stand. Pulling out a small knife, she leaped through the air at Tashigi, who despite being caught off guard, managed to pull Kusanagi from its sheathe to defend herself.

However, before they clashed, Sakura used Geppou to make a midair 90 degree turn off to the side. Using Geppou again, she leaped back toward Tashigi, this time coming from the side. The young marine officer was caught off guard by this tactic, allowing Sakura to close the distance and press her knife against Tashigi's neck.

"I can take care of myself," Sakura informed her before removing the knife and putting it away. "Everyone on this island is trained to fight."

At that moment, Naruto was treated to a second person knocking on his door. Seeing that neither Tashigi nor Sakura looked like they were about to attack the other, he answered it to find Nojiko standing there.

"We just got a call from the rear admiral," she informed him. "He wants us to transport Orochimaru's body to Enies Lobby."

"But we don't have his body," Naruto replied. "Does he want us to go back to G-5 to get it?"

"That's the strange part," Nojiko answered. "He said he's sending another ship to bring it to us. We're supposed to transport it the rest of the way. He claims it will be here shortly."

"Wait you're discussing Orochimaru of the Shichibukai?" Sakura asked in disbelief.

"Yeah, Tashigi told you we fought one," Naruto reminded her. "Well, we captured him when we did."

"But if another ship is transporting his body this far, why not just send them all the way to Enies Lobby?" Tashigi queried.

"I don't know," Nojiko answered. "He didn't say."

"As vague as being here shortly is, we should probably get back to the ship," Naruto replied. "We'll want to be ready to leave soon after it arrives."

This whole situation was a bit odd, but then Kakashi wasn't exactly a normal guy.

* * *

Assuming the boat he'd just spotted was the one Kakashi had sent, they hadn't exactly been given much warning. As soon as he'd returned to the docks, he'd taken a quick look through his telescope, just in case, and had actually spotted a ship.

It must be a pretty tiny vessel to still appear as little more than a dark spot through his telescope while still being visible over the horizon. Although it seemed to be moving closer very rapidly. When it was close enough to start to get good look at it, Naruto actually put to down the telescope to rub his eyes, doubting what he'd just saw.

But taking another look, there was no denying it. It was actually a small rowboat that was somehow speeding across the water faster than any ship he'd ever seen. The speed was probably explained by the ridiculously large oars that were being employed.

They looked to be about thirty feet long, and about as tall as man at their widest. And judging by the glint they caught in the sunlight, they were probably solid metal. The boat was manned by two men who were dressed entirely in green.

Naruto could do little more than stare, mouth agape as the boat quickly approached the shore. The two men leaped out shortly before hitting land, letting the boat's own momentum carry it forward and shooting it out of the water until it came to a stop on dry land.

Shino was still aboard the ship, but the rest of his crew looked just as shell-shocked as he was. Even Sakura didn't have anything to say.

"Springtime of Youth Delivery at your service," the older of the two men cried out. "My name is Guy, and this is my incredibly youthful student, Lee."

"Pleased to meet you," Lee called out, grabbing Naruto's hand and shaking it enthusiastically.

"Which one of you is Naruto?" Guy asked.

"That would be me," Naruto replied, managing to free his hand from Lee.

"I've heard all about you," Lee called out happily, grabbing Naruto's hand once again when he heard Naruto's response. "You're even younger than I am and you're already a captain in the marines. I'm so inspired by your success."

Naruto freed his hand a second time and took an involuntary step back from the energetic young man.

"We have the package," Guy declared, ignoring the younger man's antics.

To prove his words, he walked back the boat, and reached in to lift the unconscious form of Orochimaru. Naruto had to admit, he was a bit shocked by how casually the man was treating this.

"So neither of you are marines?" Tashigi asked.

"Correct, we're just an ordinary delivery service," Guy answered him.

Naruto doubted anything about the two of them could be called ordinary, not even their appearance, considering their twin bowl cut hairstyles and thick bushy eyebrows. He had enough tact to refrain from mentioning that, however.

"Then why did Kakashi entrust Orochimaru to you?" Tashigi queried, disapproval clear on her face.

"Because I'm his eternal rival!" Guy shouted out, pumping his fist and looking to the sky. "But I couldn't take him all the way, because not everyone in the marines understands the manly bond between two rivals."

"I don't think I want to understand it," he heard Kiba mutter from next to him.

"Are these the type of people you usually deal with?" Sakura whispered to him from his other side.

"This is definitely an exception," he whispered back.

"Anyway, Kakashi tells me you also are a specialist in unarmed combat," Guy continued. "Perhaps you would agree to a spar with my young student."

"So you practice the Rokushiki as well?" Naruto asked him, honestly a little intrigued now.

"No," Lee quickly answered. "We train our bodies to excel physically, rather than relying on simple tricks."

As hard as Naruto worked on the Rokushiki, having someone dismiss them like that didn't sit well with him.

"Well, I think I have to accept now to show you just how effective these 'simple tricks' can be," he answered.

Naruto then removed his coat and set it down before moving to empty spot of ground where there would be room to fight.

"Come at me whenever you're ready," he offered.

"Then I will," Lee agreed, charging straight at him.

Lee was pretty fast, but far short of the speed Naruto could manage with Soru. Still, he remained cautious in case Lee was holding back to get him to let his guard down. But Lee did nothing to prevent Naruto from getting behind him and send him stumbling with a kick to the square of his back.

"That speed isn't half bad for a trick, is it?" Naruto taunted as he let Lee get back to his feet.

There next few exchanges didn't go any better for Lee, as Naruto's superior speed allowed him to all but toy with the other man. He was actually beginning to loose interest when he was startled by a shout from Guy.

"It's alright, Lee," he yelled. "I give you my permission."

"Great!" Lee yelled back.

Curious what they were planning, Naruto waited as Lee leaned over and rolled up his pant legs to remove something that was was wrapped around his legs. He then stood up and repeated the process with him arms. Finished, he held the objects out to his side and dropped them.

Apparently Lee had been fighting him while wearing training weights. Naruto couldn't see how removing them would help, though. Their difference in speed had simply been too great. But a loud crash shook Naruto from his thoughts. He was stunned to see a cloud of dust shooting up from where Lee had just dropped the weights.

"How much do those things weigh?" Kiba cried out in disbelief that matched Naruto's own.

"Wait a minute," Nojiko interjected. "Between those things and the giant oars you use, how does that tiny boat even stay afloat?"

"It doesn't," Guy answered. "We're not actually floating so much as we are skimming over the water like when you skip a stone."

"You're saying that if you stop rowing, you'll sink?" Sakura asked incredulously.

"It's great training," Lee replied enthusiastically. "Now to show Naruto here just how great it is."

And this attack was like night and day when compared to Lee's previous assaults. Naruto was only barely able to get out of the way in time. Although when he'd had a chance to gather his wits and get over the surprise he realized it wasn't quite as bad as he'd first feared.

If anything, he'd say he even had the slight edge in speed. This fight would be more interesting now, but Naruto could still handle it. So their fight quickly turned into what must have looked like a high speed game of tag. Naruto and Lee rocketed around each other, quickly changing directions and trying to find an opening to attack their opponent.

Naruto finally saw one as he feigned dashing in one direction only to stay where he was as Lee darted off in the direction Naruto had feigned moving. Taking the opportunity presented to him, Naruto charged off in an intercept course, coming up to Lee from behind and to the left.

However, instead of the collision he'd been anticipating, Lee almost seemed to dance to his right letting Naruto pass in front of him before aiming a punch of his own. Lee's blow grazed over Naruto's shoulder as Naruto ducked down into a roll to avoid the attack.

He only then realized what his mistake had been. Lee wasn't using Soru, he was just running really fast. Soru depended on kicking off the ground repeatedly in the blink of an eye to create bursts of speed. It did have a downside, however, in that the burst of speed tended to be pretty much in a straight line.

Since Lee was simply running, it allowed him much more flexibility in terms of altering course. And to top it all off, his simple running was nearly as fast as Naruto's best burst of speed. Granted not learning special techniques gave him more time to condition his body, but Naruto was almost terrified to think of the speeds Lee could reach if he ever mastered Soru himself.

And as it turned out, there was a second weakness to Soru that Lee was beginning to catch on to. In between the bursts of speed, there were points were Naruto was moving much slower as he prepared to use Soru again. And it was becoming clear that Lee was now focusing on these times to make his attacks.

This strategy was putting Naruto completely on the defensive. Yet even focused entirely on defense, he was still finding it very difficult to avoid his opponent's blows. But it was time to show him that Soru wasn't the only 'trick' he knew. Naruto had a lot more than just speed on his side.

Waiting for Lee's next attack, instead of dodging, Naruto activated his Tekkai, simply absorbing a quick jab to the back of his shoulder that Lee made as he went past.

Lee faltered a bit in surprise, and Naruto used that to grab the initiative, spinning around and sweeping Lee's legs out from underneath him, sending him falling toward the ground. But Lee simply turned in fall into a roll, jumping back to his feet and dusting himself off.

"That won't work on me," Lee told Naruto.

His words brought up the memory of a similar statement Blackbeard had made, causing him to involuntarily tense. Could Lee know how to use Haki? But Naruto didn't sense anything from him as he moved to make his next attack. Lee must simply be trying to unsettle him.

So to prove Lee wrong, he reactivated his Tekkai and waited as Lee ran straight for him. He stood perfectly still as Lee sent a fist right toward his gut, confident that it was a futile attack. So he was unprepared for the air to be forced from his lungs as Lee's fist forced it out.

The fist continued its course, sending Naruto flying backward to bounce off the ground a couple of times before he regained his senses enough to flip back to his feet and skid to a halt.

"Great job with the 'stand there and let him hit you' strategy," Kiba called out to him. "Always one of my favorites."

Ignoring Kiba's barb, he remained focused on his fight. After what Lee had just done to him, he was beginning to see a shred of logic behind dismissing the Rokushiki. After all, what was the point in training in Tekkai if your opponent instead spent his time building up his muscles so much that he could overcome it with pure force?

But Naruto was far from giving up. When Lee came at him again, Naruto jumped straight up in the air as high as he could. It was almost more than he'd hoped for when Lee leaped after him. He'd nearly reached the apex of his jump when Lee caught up to him.

However, rather than meet him in a midair fight, Naruto used Geppou to push off the air, sending Naruto away from Lee and back toward the ground. Naruto quickly landed and looked up to see Lee watching him. As well trained as Lee was, without Geppou he couldn't come down any faster than gravity would take him.

As Naruto began to dash around Lee's projected landing point, he was pleased to see that Lee was somewhat limited in how fast he could spin himself around in the air. Naruto found an opening shortly before Lee landed and jumped toward Lee's back.

Lee made a valiant effort to spin to face him as quickly as possible, but was unable to prepare a guard for Naruto's attack. Naruto sent his hand flying at Lee with his pointer finger extended outward. However, just before impact, he slowed his attack, instead just tapping Lee on chest.

Lee retaliated by finishing his midair spin to land a bone-jarring kick on Naruto's side, sending him crashing back to the earth. Seeing Lee land and begin sprinting toward his position, Naruto ignored the pain of his most recent bruising and got back to his feet. But Lee's rush was stopped as Guy blocked his path.

"I'm afraid this was your loss, Lee," he told his student.

"But Naruto barely touched me," Lee complained.

"And if it had been a real fight, his finger would have gone into your heart, killing you," Guy replied.

"I had no idea he had such a terrifying ability," Lee gasped.

"That technique is one of the Rokushiki," Guy informed him. "Remember it well for next time."

"I will," Lee promised, taking out a notebook, of all things, and scribbling in it. "Just let me write that down."

"It was a good fight," Naruto assured him, trying to be polite.

"Yes, but I'll win the next one," Lee vowed. "How about a rematch? I'm ready now."

Naruto's body protested the notion, telling him his already impressive collection of bruises was quite enough.

"It won't be any different," Tashigi interjected. "He didn't even use his devil fruit power in that fight."

"You have a devil fruit power and you didn't use it?" Lee asked him curiously.

"It was supposed to be an unarmed combat match," Naruto replied. "And you weren't using a power, so I didn't think it would be fair to use one."

Lee looked taken aback by his words.

"Your youthful honor has moved me greatly," he declared loudly. "In fact, I'm going to declare you my eternal rival."

"This is a great moment indeed!" Guy declared proudly. "But I'm afraid we must cut it short. Come, Lee we have work to do."

"Of course," Lee replied.

Wasting no time, Lee ran over to his weights and quickly put them back on. The he joined Guy by their boat, from which Orochimaru had already been removed. The two of them lifted it and sprinted toward the water.

Right before they hit the shoreline, the leaped into the air. Then, in what was almost a single smooth motion, they twisted themselves around to climb into the boat from opposite sides. Having found their seats, they were already rowing as the boat landed and began speeding off into the distance.

"Isn't that nice?" Kiba snickered. "You got yourself a rival."

Honestly, Naruto wouldn't be disappointed if he never saw that pair again.

* * *

Tashigi watched as the two villagers who had been standing by the ship confronted Naruto.

"I'm sorry, but we can't let you leave," one of them told him.

Tashigi wasn't sure what was going on here, but she moved closer in case any trouble started. But the large bearded man from earlier, who she believed was called Asuma approached them first.

"Let him go," he ordered them. "It turns out there's no such thing as a curse after all."

"What are you talking about?" the man questioned.

"The whole story is made up," Asuma answered bitterly. "Just ask my father, the chief liar if you don't believe me. But I promise you it's true."

"He's right," Sakura confirmed. "I heard the same thing from the mayor. There's no reason to stop Naruto."

"Well, we're going to speak with him ourselves," he declared. "I better not find out you're lying to us."

"There's no reason for them to stop you either," Naruto told Sakura as they hurried off. "So are you still sure you don't want to come with us?"

"Not this time," she told him. "I'll think it over, but I'm not ready to leave just yet."

Tashigi was relieved by Sakura's answer. Not that it had anything to with her and Naruto, she quickly assured herself. It was just that … just that it was good they wouldn't be risking another civilian! That was it.

After all, it was bad enough that Nojiko was with them, but this was really work meant for marines. So she was simply happy that the girl wouldn't be put in any danger. That was all there was to it.

"Now I know this will go right to your head," Sakura continued. "But I wanted to tell you that your fight with Lee was very impressive. It's hard to believe you've improved so much since you left. Just your speed alone was almost more than I could follow. And you've already mastered four of the Rokushiki?"

"Just because I only showed you four doesn't mean I only know four," Naruto replied.

"If you knew either of the last two, you wouldn't have missed the opportunity to show them off," Sakura countered. "Still, I just wanted to say that it's a bit reassuring to know how strong you've become. But you'd better write from time to time."

Sakura then turned to face Tashigi.

"Try to see that he doesn't get into too much trouble," she told her. "I know he can be a handful. And good luck."

Tashigi was about to ask her what she was referring to when Sakura moved in to whisper in her ear.

"A bit of advice," she began, "he can be a bit dense, so you'll probably have to do something that's not very subtle to get through to him."

Tashigi felt her cheeks warming as she realized what Sakura was referring to. She was actually a really nice girl after all. Completely and totally way off base on this, but nice nonetheless.

* * *

**AN**

Sorry this chapter took so long, but I kept it under a month at least. The next chapter might be a bit of a wait too considering I'm going on vacation next week and that will eat two weekends to go with it. Seeing as weekends are when I do most of my writing, that's going to really delay things.

So, I'm sorry for toying with you a bit about Jiraiya and Naruto being on Leaf Island concurrently, but it's not yet time for Jiraiya's piece of information to reach Naruto. (Warning: Author is not really sorry at all.) As promised, I answered some of the questions my story had but created a bunch of new ones for you to mull over.

A lot of you were probably wondering if Sakura was going to join the crew. Actually, I was too. Or more accurately I changed my mind on that decision several times since I started writing this. I was even strongly considering changing it one last time when writing this chapter. But I decided to stick with no, so that's my final answer (until and unless I change my mind again at a later date.)

But rest assured, the crew is not yet complete, nor am I done with the people of Leaf Island. Although depending on what the manga does before I catch up to it, I may change some future plans.

Finally, criticism, comments, reviews, speculation, or random nonsense, I welcome it all. I even respond, more often than not.


	14. Chapter 14

Naruto hadn't been expecting to receive a new mission so quickly. He wished Kakashi could have found someone else to transport Orochimaru's body. Although it was less than a day's sailing to Enies Lobby from Leaf Island. That was probably part of the reason he'd chosen them for this task.

Normally he wouldn't be so eager to be finished with a task, but something about being around Orochimaru's unmoving, barely breathing body was disconcerting to him. He didn't know what it was, as he wouldn't say he was afraid of the former Shichibukai. It was just that being around it seemed to cause him a dull headache. Whatever was going on, he'd be glad when they could hand off the body.

Naruto, however, was not about to let a simple headache stop him from getting to work on learning Haki. They'd hardly set sail before he found an empty spot on the deck and began his training. But now that he'd been at it for several hours, he was beginning to get frustrated.

Naruto didn't think he was making any progress. But even worse than the lack of progress was the fact that he couldn't be sure. He'd assumed he'd be able to feel something, much as he'd felt Blackbeard's own Haki, but he wasn't even sure that was the case. The old man had given him some basic advice on focusing his will and projecting it outward, but he hadn't even mentioned how Naruto would know if it were working.

The whole situation really just wanted to make him hit something. A particular bucket that happened to be sitting near him seemed all but fated to be pounded into sawdust when it was saved by the ship suddenly lurching to starboard. As it continued to turn, Naruto stood up to complain to whomever was steering the ship. His harsh words were cut short as a quick glance revealed no one standing by the helm at all.

In confusion, Naruto walked over to helm, allowing him to see what had happened. Kiba's body was lying prone on the ground, hand still gripping the wheel he must have held onto as he fell. That explained the sudden turn. Inspecting the eternal pose that Guy had delivered along with Orochimaru, Naruto resumed the correct course before checking on Kiba. But a quick examination showed nothing wrong with the young lieutenant.

"You fell asleep at the wheel?" Naruto asked Kiba, not that he really expected an answer.

Naruto kicked him roughly out of the way, but when even that didn't wake him, he decided to leave Kiba there. Hopefully he'd wake up with a few aches and pains from sleeping funny. Maybe that would teach him not to doze off on the job.

* * *

Rubbing the sleep from his eyes somewhat irritably, Naruto climbed above deck. Not even a good night's sleep had been able to rid him of his headache. After giving his eyes a moment to adjust to the morning sunlight, he spotted Nojiko leaning over the railing and gazing at the ocean.

It wasn't unusual for her to up before him; she usually was the ship's earliest riser. The oddity was in the fact she'd found nothing to occupy her. Usually she would be busy with cooking, target practice, or simply reading the news, if a paper had been delivered.

Naruto wasn't always the best at reading people, but something just seemed off about the way she was slouching over the railing like that. And being the captain, he supposed it was his responsibility to see if anything was going on. Decision made, he walked over to where she stood.

"Is everything okay?" he asked her.

She jumped a bit at his question, spinning around to face him.

"Oh, Naruto," she replied. "I didn't realize you were up yet."

"It looked like you were pretty deep in thought," he told her.

"Yeah, it's really nothing serious," she responded. "I was just thinking about Nami. I mean, I know she has to be alright, but I can't stop myself from worrying. We haven't heard anything about her crew since they left for Sky Island."

"Well, we don't usually get a lot of news from Sky Island," Naruto replied, hoping to cheer her up. "But they didn't seem like the type to keep a low profile. I'm sure as soon as they're done with whatever they're doing up there we'll be hearing all about it. I'd wager we won't have to wait long either."

"Thanks," she told him. "I know you're probably right, but I just wish I had something to keep me distracted until we do."

"We should be arriving at Enies Lobby any time now," Naruto pointed out. "It's supposed to be incredible to look at. Where else can you find Islands floating over a pit with waterfalls on every side?"

"I appreciate the effort," Nojiko told him, "but are you really trying to cheer me up by going on about a heavily fortified marine base? One where pirates like my sister are tried for their crimes?"

The smirk on her face betrayed that fact that, contrary to her words, he had succeeded in cheering her, somewhat.

"Sorry, I guess I didn't think that through," Naruto answered jokingly. "I could tell you about Impel Down if you prefer."

"Jerk," she declared as playfully punched him in the arm. "Although, truth be told, I am sort of looking forward to seeing Enies Lobby."

"Land Ho!" Naruto's clone called down from the crow's nest.

"Looks like you won't have to wait long," he replied.

The two of them walked to the prow of the ship, able to see the small island off in the distance. Naruto motioned up to crow's nest where his clone responded by tossing down the telescope. Catching it easily, Naruto held it up to his eye to get a better look at the landmass they were approaching.

"That's odd," he said out loud. "It almost looks as if there's smoke rising from the island."

"Let me see," Nojiko requested.

Naruto handed her the telescope and she stared through it for a bit herself.

"Is it just me, or do those buildings look damaged to you?" she asked after a while.

His curiosity now in full gear, Naruto took the telescope back for another look. The island was still far off, but he was able to make it out better than the last time he'd looked. And it quickly became clear that Nojiko had been right. And this looked to much worse than simple poor maintenance.

"Go wake the rest of the crew," he ordered two of his clones, who had been loitering around them trying to overhear what was going on.

Nodding they ran off to do as he'd ordered. Shino made his appearance so quickly that Naruto wondered if he'd already been on his way up. But it was a few more minutes before Kiba, Akamaru, and Tashigi were led above deck by his clones.

"This better be important," Kiba complained irritably. "It's too early to be getting up for anything less than an emergency."

Naruto didn't immediately answer, the sight before him having drawn him in almost hypnotically. In the time it had taken for them to arrive, they'd moved close enough to see the true extent of the damages. To sum it up, Enies Lobby was entirely in ruins. He couldn't spot a single building left standing that wasn't at least half collapsed or missing an entire wall.

But even without a reply, Kiba and Tashigi were soon joining him in his impression of a fish, as it was now apparent even to the naked eye that something was very wrong.

"What happened?" Tashigi asked, finally breaking the collective silence.

"I don't have a clue," Naruto answered.

But her words did snap him out of his stupor. So he began to search the area around the island for any sort of clue. But the only thing he saw was a single vessel, and it was a marine battleship. It didn't seem likely they had anything to do with the destruction, but maybe they would know what was going on.

"There's another ship over there," he told them, pointing out its location. "Let's see what they have to say about this."

It didn't take long to reach the other ship and pull up alongside it. A large officer, sporting a mustache and a Mohawk of some sort, moved to the edge of his ship to address them.

"I'm Vice Admiral Momonga," the man called down to them. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm Captain Naruto," he replied. "We were sent to deliver the prisoner Orochimaru to Enies Lobby, sir. If I might ask, what exactly happened here?"

"There was a pirate assault," Momonga replied. "It was instigated by Straw Hat Luffy, with the help of a band of criminals from Water 7."

"What happened to the pirates?" Nojiko demanded of him a bit more forcefully than could be considered polite.

"I'm afraid all of them escaped," he answered, thankfully not seeming offended by her question.

The man's news almost caused Naruto to doubt his own hearing. A group of pirates attacked one of the most heavily fortified marine compounds in the world, lay waste to it, and then escaped unharmed?

What exactly was this criminal organization that had helped him, the Yonkou? The scary thing was, that getting their aid almost seemed plausible compared to Luffy's crew doing this with just a local group of thugs to help.

"What should we do with Orochimaru?" Naruto asked, deciding to switch topics since he was getting nowhere trying to grasp just what had happened.

"Ah," Momonga said, slapping a fist into his palm. "I should have realized it when you first said you had him aboard. I knew I recognized your name from somewhere. You're the young marine who captured him in the first place, aren't you?"

"That's right," Naruto said proudly.

Next to him, Kiba coughed loudly and gave him a nasty look.

"Although I did have the help of my crew," he quickly added, realizing they deserved some credit as well.

Well, most of them did. He wouldn't have minded stiffing Kiba, as Naruto still had the strong urge to disembowel him for his recent actions. Wait, disembowel? For a moment there, he'd almost felt a genuine bloodlust. The headache must be affecting him more than realized.

"Well, I'm looking forward to seeing what your career yet holds," Momonga told him. "As for the prisoner, transfer him to my ship and I'll see that he reaches Impel Down."

"Right away, sir," Naruto saluted.

The exchange of the prisoner went smoothly, and as their ships pulled apart, Naruto was pleased to find that his headache was already receding. Without it distracting him, maybe he'd have a chance to sort through the recent revelations.

"I told you they survived their trip to Sky Island," Nojiko pointedly declared to Shino.

"Their survival doesn't prove they went to any such place," he responded. "The far more likely conclusion is that Blackbeard was lying about their departure."

"We have more important things to worry about than how they survived," Tashigi interjected. "They just took out Enies Lobby. We can't let them get away with that."

"You don't really believe they did this, do you?" Nojiko asked. "I'm sure there's more going on here than we've been told. They mentioned a criminal organization from Water 7. They're probably the ones behind this, and the Straw Hat Pirates are just taking the blame."

"Whoever did it, Tashigi is correct that they should be brought to justice," Shino announced. "While we can't be certain they returned there, it might be valuable to take a trip to investigate Water 7."

Shino and Tashigi were right. While Naruto had no real desire to cause Nojiko any undue emotional harm, this was something that simply couldn't go unpunished.

"Yes, let's set course for Water 7," Naruto ordered. "We'll bring the culprits to justice, whoever they may be."

"Fine," Nojiko replied belligerently. "Since I know Nami had nothing to do with it."

"Aren't you forgetting that we don't have an eternal pose that will take us there?" Kiba asked.

"There are tracks for a sea train that lead from Enies Lobby to Water 7," Shino told them. "We can follow those tracks to our destination."

"Then let's do so," Naruto proclaimed. "We need to show them it isn't that easy to mess with the marines and get away."

* * *

Nami could hardly believe what she was hearing. Franky had used the money he'd stolen to buy this legendary wood, and now he was going to use it to build them a ship. Although she might have to take a look at this blueprint of his. Anything Franky came up with was liable to be weird to the point of being embarrassing to ride in.

Everyone else looked pleased by his proclamation, but most of them didn't even have a sense of shame. They'd probably ride in giant clown ship and find the whole thing amusing. Nami, however, had much higher standards than that.

Nami was about to make her thoughts known when the door flew open and a number of figures rushed through. Her heart skipped a beat when she the flash of an officer's coat.

"Nobody move!" the officer ordered loudly.

After Nami had been given enough time to get a look at just who had barged in, a second beat was passed over by heart..

"Nojiko, what are you doing here?" she asked loudly.

"Hey, Naruto, Nojiko, it's good to see you again!" Luffy proclaimed, his broad smile showing he was completely oblivious to the situation they were in.

Looking around the room, she found she recognized most of her sister's companions. The one wearing the marine coat was their captain, Naruto. The wild looking one with tattoos on his face was Kiba. The swordswoman who had seemed upset about letting them go last time was Tashigi.

She couldn't recall the dog's name, but that hardly seemed important. There was also a new face, or part of a face technically as some of it was obscured by a pair of sunglasses and a high collared coat. He was the biggest unknown factor so she'd have to keep an eye on him if things got ugly.

"You know what we're here for," Naruto declared. "We came to bring you to justice for what you did to Enies Lobby."

"Naruto!" Nojiko berated. "We're supposed to find out who's really responsible. It was that criminals from here in Water 7, right?"

"You'd better not be talking about us," Franky shot back angrily. "Because we're not the ones at fault for this mess."

"And none of us were behind it," Sanji added. "We were just rescuing Robin-chwan. It was your own marines that destroyed Enies Lobby."

"That's ridiculous," Tashigi replied. "Why would the marines destroy their own island?"

"It's called the buster call," Nami told them. "CP9 was determined to stop Robin from escaping, no matter what the cost."

"There's no such thing as CP9 or a buster call," Naruto insisted stubbornly. "You should try to come up with a better lie than that. Even if the organization was real, why would they care so much about a single woman?"

"It's not a lie!" Nami shot back. "And if you want to know why they care, maybe you should start asking around about the Void Century and see what sort of reaction you get from the marines."

"Void Century?" Naruto asked dubiously. "Are you just going to keep making up terms in hopes you'll confuse me? I should warn you, I've never been the type to believe in crazy conspiracy theories."

Having been distracted by the argument, Nami only then noticed that Kiba had been slowly creeping over next to Sanji. She tried to call out a warning but was too late, as Kiba had already sent a fist into the side of the unprepared cook's face, knocking him to the ground.

"What was that for?" Sanji yelled out angrily as he jumped back to his feet.

"I never had my chance to pay you back for our last encounter," Kiba answered with smirk.

Just great, it looked like fighting had already broken out. What else could go wrong? Nami should have known better to ask that question, even in her thoughts. For almost as soon as she had, a wall burst inward letting another marine officer inside. This one was a large man considerably older than anyone else in the room.

"Garp!" Naruto called out in surprise.

He didn't say Garp, did he? He couldn't possibly mean that Garp, could he?

"Naruto?" he replied. "What are you doing here?"

Rather than answer, Naruto simply took on a new aura of confidence before turning back to them.

"You may as well surrender," he told them. "You might have stood a chance of escaping before, but there's no way you can deal with a vice admiral and us at the same time."

Nami wasn't certain she disagreed with his assessment. She only hoped she could convince Luffy to run rather than fight. She turned to her captain to make her suggestion only to find him in the middle of a nap while still standing on his feet.

"When did you fall asleep?" she shrieked angrily at him.

But while she'd been talking, Garp had already begun making his move. Franky and Sanji made an effort to block his path, but the elderly man slipped past them as if they were standing still. Almost before Nami had realized he was moving, he'd reached the still sleeping Luffy.

She was at least relieved to see he was using his fist to attack, which was no threat to Luffy. His fist collided with the top of Luffy's head waking him. Although to Nami's surprise, he did seem to be rubbing his head in pain.

"That hurts," he proclaimed. "What did you do that for, grandpa?"

The whole room was brought to silence for a second as his words were being processed.

"He's your grandfather?" Nami asked, hearing nearly everyone else in the room shouting out their own variation of that question.

"Yeah," Luffy confirmed.

"Anyway, what are you doing as a pirate?" Garp berated him. "I trained you to be a marine."

"And I told you I was going to be a pirate!" Luffy fired back.

"You let that stupid red head poison your mind!" Garp shouted at Luffy.

"Shanks saved my life, don't speak about him like that!" Luffy yelled out angrily.

"Sir, shouldn't we discuss this after we capture them?" Tashigi suggested.

"We already told you, we weren't the ones that destroyed Enies Lobby," Nami insisted, hoping that Garp might go easy on them since Luffy was his grandson.

"We'll see about that," Naruto said. "Garp, they claim CP9 was behind what happened at Enies Lobby. You're a vice admiral, so you'd be sure to know of any such organization if it existed."

"Never heard of it," Garp answered. "Sounds made up to me."

"See," Naruto answered smugly. "You shouldn't have used such a transparent lie. You could have at least claimed it was CP7 or something like that."

"That wouldn't have helped," Garp argued. "CP7 sounds just as fake."

It was Nami's turn to feel smug. She was going to enjoy rubbing this in Naruto's face. Maybe it'd teach him not to doubt her word.

"Looks like your source of information isn't all that reliable," she quipped.

"You're just kidding, right?" Naruto asked. "You do know that CP1-8 are real, don't you?"

"Are you sure?" Garp asked. "I think I'd have heard of them if they really existed."

Nami's smile grew even wider at Naruto's obvious frustration.

"Yeah, and it's a ridiculous name," Luffy interjected. "Who would actually believe in a place called CP9?"

"What are you saying?" Nami yelled at him. "We fought them ourselves."

"When did we do that?" Luffy asked, scratching his head.

"Back at Enies Lobby," she told him. "You remember, Rob Lucci, Spandem and all of them."

"Are you sure that was CP9?" he asked dubiously.

Nami clenched a fist in frustration.

"You two really are related, aren't you?" she asked rhetorically.

"He's nothing like me," Garp protested. "If he was he would have become a marine instead of a pirate. After Dragon, I hoped Luffy at least would listen to me. But he's proven to be just as rebellious as his father."

The room was shocked into silence a second time as Luffy's relationship to the leader of the revolutionaries was announced.

"Your father is Dragon?" came simultaneous cries from numerous occupants of the room.

"I have a father?" Luffy cried out after the initial roar had died down, being a little slower on the uptake. "And who is Dragon?"

"Ah, that was supposed to be a secret," Garp answered, not sounding very remorseful.

"Luffy, I'm coming!" Nami heard Zoro calling out from outside.

"Oh, that's Luffy's crew member isn't it?" Garp asked. "You two, try to stop him."

"Yes sir," two young looking marines that had come in with Garp replied.

The two of them ran toward Zoro, attempting to intercept them. He easily blocked their attacks but had to twist his torso to the side at an odd angle to avoid getting skewered by a thrust Tashigi sent his way. Nami hadn't even noticed the other woman had followed the two boys until just then.

"What are you doing, you crazy woman?" Zoro questioned her.

"Stop!" Garp ordered. "I didn't say anything about you attacking him. Now get back here this instant."

Tashigi looked reluctant, but sheathed her sword and followed orders. The two boys stopped their attack as well, one of them approaching Luffy.

"Wow, I'm still no match for Zoro," he declared. "Anyway it's been a long time, Luffy, Zoro. Do you remember me? It's, Coby."

"Coby?" Luffy asked. "I have a friend named Coby, but he's smaller than you."

"I am that Coby," the boy replied.

"We're not here to catch up on old times," Tashigi complained. "I don't mean to keep repeating myself, but when are we going to capture them?"

Tashigi was really starting to get on Nami's nerves.

"We're not," Garp answered simply. "I'm letting them go."

"What?" Tashigi screeched. "You can't be serious."

"I'm completely serious," Garp answered.

Honestly, Nami was about as shocked as Tashigi. She was hoping he would hold back to hide the fact that he was letting them get away, but to openly say they could leave?

"I can't accept that," Tashigi declared firmly. "Even if Luffy is your grandson, he's still a pirate. And regardless of who's responsible for most of the damage in Enies Lobby, he still attacked it, right?"

"Yeah, I don't think I've ever beat up so many people at once," Luffy confirmed.

"You're not helping!" Nami shouted, running over and slamming him over the head with her Clima Tact.

"You're beginning to bug me," Garp told Tashigi. "I suggest you shut up and do what I say."

"Or what?" Tashigi asked sharply. "You'll report me for insubordination?"

"No, I'll hit you until you stop whining," Garp threatened.

"We're going to have to let it go this time," Naruto told her, apparently a bit more levelheaded than his subordinate."

"He is your superior officer," her sister chimed in. "You _are_ supposed to follow his orders right?"

"Fine," Tashigi finally said. "Just let the pirates escape. Why should marines worry about pirates after all?"

In a final act of defiance, Tashigi stormed off out the hole in the wall without even asking for leave to depart.

"Tashigi!" Naruto called out after her, before following her retreating form.

"I'll try to meet up with you later," Nojiko told Nami, giving her a quick hug before following after her captain.

The rest of their crew soon filed out after them, although Sanji was sending Kiba nasty looks as he departed. She was almost worried he was going to attack his retreating form.

"Goodbye," Luffy waved happily as they left. "Nice to see you again."

"You should get busy fixing that hole you made," one of Garp's marines told him.

"What?" Garp asked. "I don't want to. You guys fix it."

"You're the one who made it," he replied. "We'll help you fix it, but we're not going to let you get out of the work."

"Alright," Garp conceded. "I guess we should find some tools and materials.

"Naruto really is a nice guy," Luffy declared after Garp had left. "He came all this way just to see us. Most of the other pirates we run into seem to be jerks, so I'm glad they're not like that."

"Wait, you did realize he was wearing a marine uniform, right?" Nami asked him.

"Yeah, that was pretty funny," Luffy agreed. "You may not have noticed, but my grandpa is pretty dumb. Naruto just had to wear a uniform as a disguise and he thought he was a marine."

"Should we tell him?" Nami asked the rest of the crew as Luffy was busy laughing at his grandfathers 'stupidity.'

"It's probably kinder not to," Zoro replied.

* * *

"Tashigi!" Naruto called out running out of the hole Garp had created and after the young woman.

However, if she'd heard his words, she was ignoring him, continuing to head away from the building. Getting a little worried, he hurried after her. Despite her brisk pace, Naruto quickly caught up to Tashigi, which finally convinced her to stop.

"Look, I'm sorry about what happened back there," he told her. "Garp isn't always the easiest person to deal with."

"He's not just hard to deal with," Tashigi replied. "This is the first time I've ever seriously considered disobeying orders."

"Before you do anything rash, let me give Kakashi a call," he suggested. "Maybe he'll be able to do something about this."

"Alright," Tashigi agreed. "It's better to go through the proper channels if we can."

"Great," Naruto replied.

He then quickly switched places with a clone he'd left back on the ship. He had to admit, this new trick was very convenient. Although he was a bit nervous about actually calling Kakashi.

He'd refrained from reporting in after they'd completed their mission, afraid that Kakashi might not allow them to go to Water 7. But he'd promised Tashigi, so he couldn't back out now. Going to the den den mushi, he picked up the receiver and made the call. It took surprisingly little time for them to get Kakashi on the line.

"I'm afraid I have some dire news to report," Naruto began. "Enies Lobby has been destroyed."

"I know," Kakashi answered. "There's hardly a marine officer who hasn't heard the news yet. That Luffy really is a bold kid isn't he? But back to your report, what happened with your mission."

"I was able to hand off the prisoner," Naruto replied. "He's being taken directly to Impel Down. After the transfer, we gave chase to the Straw Hat Pirates and are currently in Water 7."

"And did you find them there?" Kakashi asked.

"Yes," Naruto answered. "But Vice Admiral Garp is here as well. And it turns out that Luffy is his grandson."

"Really?" Kakashi queried. "I guess I can see why Luffy is such a troublemaker now."

"And if you think that's surprising," Naruto continued, "you won't believe just who bridges the generation gap between them."

"Oh, now I am intrigued," he replied.

"Luffy's father … is Dragon," Naruto said as dramatically as he could.

He was greeted by silence for several seconds on the other end.

"Actually, that explains a lot," Kakashi muttered.

"What does it explain?" Naruto asked, a bit confused.

"That's not important," he answered. "Anyway, I take it Garp is giving you trouble."

"That's right," Naruto confirmed. "How did you know?"

"He's Garp," Kakashi said simply. "That's what he does."

"I suppose that's true," Naruto agreed. "And he's forbidden us from capturing the Straw Hat Pirates. He insists that we let them go."

"Well, I can't override his order myself, but I will get in touch with someone who can," Kakashi promised. "Until then, stay put in Water 7, and keep an eye on them. You should probably run some surveillance on Garp too."

"Understood, sir," Naruto confirmed. "I'd better go see what they're up to now."

"Very well," Kakashi told him. "I'll call if the situation changes."

Hanging up, Naruto switched back with the same clone, finding himself again next to Tashigi. While he'd been gone the rest of his crew had caught up as well.

"Kakashi's orders are to stay here and keep an eye on Luffy," Naruto announced. "He's going to see about getting Garp's orders overturned."

"I thought that might be wise, so I'm already tracking them," Shino declared. "They haven't yet moved."

"Okay, Shino is being weird again," Kiba claimed, prompting Shino to send him a look.

Despite, or perhaps because of the look being as emotionless as ever, Kiba looked a bit intimidated by it.

"But putting him aside for the moment," he continued a little nervously. "That's a pretty neat new trick you have."

His memories from the clone told him it had already explained to them how he was using his clone as a sort of teleportation power.

"I like it," Naruto replied proudly. "Anyway, we can't act yet, but we can come up with a plan for what to do if that changes. So let's get busy."

* * *

With Shino assuring them he could track the Straw Hat Pirates, the crew was currently making their way back to the ship. As they walked, Naruto, Shino, and Kiba were already in the middle of a discussion about what they knew about Straw Hat Pirates.

Were any of the unknown people who had been with them new members of the crew? What did they know about their fighting abilities if anything? Those sort of questions. Nojiko, however, couldn't bring herself to pay much attention to the conversation. Partly because she was disgusted that they were still acting as if a fight with Nami and her crew was a foregone conclusion.

The other reason, however, was Tashigi. The swordswoman had fallen a good way behind their group and still seemed quite disturbed by what had happened. Despite Nojiko being as pleased by Garp's decision as Tashigi was depressed by it, she couldn't help but feel a bit sorry for the other woman. Deciding to do something, she turned around and retraced her steps until she was next to Tashigi.

"Come to taunt me?" Tashigi asked bitterly.

"Not at all," Nojiko replied. "I was actually hoping to console you."

Tashigi just looked at her dubiously.

"I won't lie and say I'm not happy we're letting them go," Nojiko continued. "But I do respect how strong your sense of justice is. I just wish you'd realize that good and evil isn't as simple as marine and pirate."

"I'll admit that there might be a few marines who don't join for the best of reasons," Tashigi conceded. "But pirates are pirates. You choose to become one. What is calling yourself a pirate if not a declaration of ill intent?"

Nojiko really didn't think this debate was helping either of their moods. So it time to try another tactic. Moving in front of Tashigi, she turned around, walking backwards as they slowly moved along. She wanted a good look at Tashigi's face for this conversation.

"I think you need to get all of this out of your mind for a while," she suggested. "Do something to distract yourself."

"What exactly would you suggest?" Tashigi asked.

"I don't know," Nojiko replied, grinning mischievously as she pretended to think about it. "Maybe you could ask Naruto on a date."

Tashigi stopped dead in her tracks at the suggestion, getting a look that could almost be described as horror on her face.

"W-what are you saying?" she asked. "Even if I wanted to, which I don't, do you think I could just do something like that so easily?"

"It's not that hard," Nojiko assured her. "Just say something like this."

Nojiko cleared her throat as if preparing for a major theatrical performance.

"Naruto," she began. "As long as we're stuck here, I was hoping to have a look around Water 7. So I was wondering if you'd like to come with me."

Tashigi must really have been uncomfortable about the whole situation. She wasn't even looking Nojiko in the eye anymore but seemed to be staring at something behind her.

"Sure, that sounds fun," Naruto answered from behind her, startling Nojiko as she spun around. "Just let me tell the guys where I'm going and I'll be right back."

Naruto walked off before Nojiko even had a chance to say anything.

"I didn't realize he was back there," Nojiko assured Tashigi as she turned to face her once again."

"You don't have to explain anything to me," Tashigi replied icily. "If you want to go on a date with Naruto that's none of my business."

Great, now Nojiko needed to straighten things out with both Naruto and Tashigi. Actually, maybe she didn't have to. It would be difficult to explain things to Naruto without giving away how Tashigi felt about Naruto, and Nojiko had no intention of being that cruel to her.

So maybe she should actually take some advice from Kiba. Judging by the daggers Tashigi was glaring at her, going on a date with Naruto might be just the shove the young woman needed to make her own move.

"Well, if that's how you feel, I guess I might as well enjoy myself," she responded. "I mean you said yourself you weren't about to ask him, so one of us may as well have some fun."

If Tashigi's glare had been sending daggers her way before, she was being rained on by cannonballs now. She almost expected Tashigi to openly challenge her right there. But she somehow restrained herself, allowing Naruto the time to return.

"So, where would you like to go?" Naruto asked.

"Actually I was thinking we could get something to eat first," she replied. "We passed a place not too far back that caught my eye."

"That sounds good," he told her. "I'm pretty hungry myself."

So they departed, leaving Tashigi behind. Earlier, Nojiko had been too worried about Nami to pay much attention to the scenery. Now, however, she was surprised by how damaged the city looked.

Compared to Enies Lobby's state, it was practically pristine. From a more absolute point of view, however, it was clear that there was junk just lying all over the streets and more than a few buildings looked to have sustained real structural damage.

But they soon came to the restaurant she'd told him about and entered the building. As nice as it had looked outside, inside the restaurant was a mess. There were only a couple of tables standing, despite the fact that is looked made to handle at least 10 of them. The rest of the room was pretty barren save for a large pile of what appeared to be junk in the corner.

Said junk pile contained a number of broken chairs and tables, explaining why so few were left. She and Naruto stood just inside the entrance for a while not sure how to react. But a smartly dressed man quickly approached the pair looking pleased to see them.

"Forgive the appearance," he told them. "I haven't had a chance to fully clean up from the Aqua Laguna. However, we are open and I assure you the quality of the food hasn't suffered in the slightest."

The man almost forcefully ushered them to one of the tables where they sat down as he handed them some menus. One thing she could say about the restaurant was that the service was great. She supposed that was to be expected when they were the only customers.

That didn't stop her from enjoying their own personal waiter or how quickly the food arrived after they'd ordered. Both of them had opted to try the local specialty meat. Although Naruto had gotten the prime cut mizu mizu meat while Nojiko had settled for a salad that featured it.

"This is really good," she told him, after trying her meal. "It's nice to get out and enjoy a restaurant from time to time."

"Yeah, it's pretty good," Naruto admitted. "But it's hard to get too excited. The whole crew is spoiled by your cooking, it's almost like eating every meal at a restaurant. Although I suppose it is nice for you to not have to cook it."

Nojiko hadn't been expecting such a compliment. Was he just trying to butter her up because they were on a date? No, she'd expect such behavior from Kiba, but Naruto didn't seem the type. Besides, he'd already gone back to eating, seeming more interested in his food than in her.

"I'm really not that good," Nojiko replied humbly. "There's not even all that much I know how to make."

"Well, the stuff you do make really is good," Naruto assured her. "And you can always expand your repertoire. If you're worried about it, maybe we can grab you a cook book or two before we set sail."

"That might not be a bad idea," she agreed.

They quickly finished off the meal and were brought the bill.

"I've got it," Naruto quickly told her, taking out his wallet.

"Are you sure?" Nojiko asked. "I am the one who wanted to eat here."

She felt it was only polite to offer to chip in, but secretly she was hoping he wouldn't take her up on it. Her own funds were dangerously low.

"There's no need," Naruto told her, allaying her worries. "You're part of the crew but you don't even get a salary. It's only fair I take care of these things from time to time."

Thanking him, she got up and left the restaurant as Naruto finished paying. As she did, Nojiko thought she caught movement on a nearby roof, but it was so brief she wasn't entirely certain. Even if she hadn't imagined it, it was probably just a bird or something, so she put it out of her mind.

"Now that we've eaten why don't we explore the city a bit," Nojiko suggested to Naruto, who had just followed her outside.

"Sure," he answered simply.

They resumed walking around the city, but Nojiko couldn't bring herself to pay much attention to the scenery this time. That flash of motion must have spooked her more than she'd realized, because she couldn't shake the feeling that she was being watched. Despite being cognizant of how silly she was being, she couldn't resist the urge to quickly look over her shoulder to see if anyone was there.

When she did, she had to smirk at what she saw. She hadn't been imagining things after all, as this time she'd been able to get a good look at Tashigi before she ducked behind a chimney. She must consider this her business despite her words to the contrary, not that Nojiko found that at all surprising.

"If you don't mind my asking," Naruto began, interrupting her thoughts, "why would your sister join a pirate crew when it was pirates that killed your mother?"

It seemed Naruto just couldn't let go of the fact that he was being forced to let Luffy and his crew run free. Well, maybe this would be a good opportunity to get it through his head that they didn't deserve to be imprisoned.

"Don't misunderstand," she answered. "My sister always hated pirates more than anyone. After all, killing our mother was hardly the end of Arlong's crimes. He enslaved and oppressed our village for years. And beyond that, Bellemere wasn't even our real mother. Nami and I were the only survivors of a pirate attack on our original village."

"That doesn't answer my question at all," Naruto complained. "If she hates pirates so much, what would possess her to become one?"

"That just goes to show you how different Luffy is from a normal pirate," Nojiko replied. "If Luffy had even a drop of the cruelty that pirates are known for, Nami would have been the first to put a stop to him."

"That still doesn't explain what happened in Enies Lobby," Naruto told her stubbornly.

Nojiko fought down the urge to argue further. While she did, she spotted a sign shaped like a book, hanging from a building further down the road. That created an opportunity for some small mischief. She only hoped Tashigi was still shadowing them.

"That looks like a bookstore," she declared to Naruto. "How about we go see about those cookbooks?"

Grabbing his arm, she began pulling him along, speeding up into a jog. Tashigi would probably have a hard time with stealth if she meant to follow them on the roofs at this speed. They were about halfway to the store when she heard a large crash from an alleyway behind them.

"What was that?" Naruto asked, startled by the noise.

Nojiko was just trying to determine that herself, seeing that the alleyway was pretty wide, with a large gap between the buildings. Could Tashigi have injured herself missing the jump?

"We should go look," Nojiko suggested, worried about the other woman.

The two of them hurried over and peered down the alley, but all they found was a pile of garbage containing what appeared to be rotting produce. If Tashigi had fallen, at least she was well enough to make a quick getaway.

"Maybe it was a stray animal," Naruto speculated.

"Something like that, I'm sure," she replied, fighting back a smirk.

There were no further distractions prior to reaching the bookstore. Somehow, the owner had managed to protect most of the books from water damage. Thanks to that, Nojiko was able to find a couple of cookbooks that had some recipes she wanted to try. Naruto was kind enough to buy both of them for her. They didn't have all the ingredients they would need, however, so they did some quick shopping as well.

They ended up walking around a good portion of the city finding everything, considering how few places had reopened since the storm and the limited stock many of the stores that were open had.

By the time they'd finished they were both more than ready to return to the ship. Naruto sent a couple of clones ahead with the groceries while the two of them walked back at a more sedate pace.

"Thanks for inviting me, I had a lot of fun," Naruto told her.

"I did too," Nojiko replied.

She wasn't just saying that to be polite, either. This may have just been a way to motivate Tashigi to act, but she'd found it to be an all around pleasant experience. It was too early to tell if this would prove the push that Tashigi needed, but judging from Tashigi's actions, it wouldn't be motivation that was lacking if she didn't.

"Great, then we should do this again sometime," he suggested.

Before she could answer, a blur passed through her vision. The object causing said blur fell into one of the waterways creating a large splash. She almost thought it had looked like a human. And while she hadn't gotten a good look, she could think of only one person who would be hanging around on a nearby roof while being clumsy enough to fall from it. At least she had water to break her fall this time.

"We can talk about that some other time," she responded. "Let's just go back to the ship for now."

She was unable to hide her smirk this time, but that was no cause for concern, as Naruto was facing the other way examining the source of the splash. He was looking in the wrong place, however, as Nojiko spotted a familiar head quickly bob above the water for air much further down the waterway.

Naruto soon gave up and the two of them turned back toward the ship. Or Nojiko did at least, Naruto decided he wanted to go check on what Garp was up to, wished her well, and departed.

When Nojiko arrived at the ship, she was a little surprised to see that Tashigi had beaten her back. Her present state, however proved a source of amusement to Nojiko, seeing as her clothes were currently soaking wet and quite filthy.

"I'm back from my date," Nojiko announced, trying not to laugh openly at Tashigi's appearance.

"Oh, that's right, you were on a date," Tashigi replied with feigned disinterest. "I'd forgotten. I was too occupied with all the important work we have to waste time on such frivolous activities."

"Important work like swimming?" Nojiko quipped.

"I just slipped, that's all," Tashigi fired back sharply. "Now if you'll excuse me I'm still quite busy."

So saying, Tashigi spun around to head below deck, but Nojiko placed a hand on her shoulder to stop her.

"You have a tomato in your hair," she informed Tashigi.

Finding that there really was a partial tomato matted into her hair where Nojiko had indicated, she quickly removed it, her face turning almost as red as the offending vegetable. Tashigi once again turned to march away, but her efforts to do so in a dignified manner were somewhat hindered by the giggling that Nojiko could no longer suppress.

* * *

It didn't take long for Naruto to find a marine who could direct him to Garp. As he neared his destination, however, he began to have second thoughts. His past experiences with the man left him a little jumpy.

He had to keep fighting the urge to activate Tekkai just thinking of him. But he resisted his body's instincts and continued on. When he entered the building, he found that Garp was indeed there, currently stuffing his face at an unsightly pace.

"Ah, Naruto!" Garp called out when he entered, spraying food out of his mouth that he hadn't even bothered to swallow before speaking. "I'm glad you came."

"I trust you've been keeping up with your training," he declared, continuing to eat as he spoke.

"Of course," Naruto assured him.

Garp would probably be surprised by just how far Naruto had come since they'd last met.

"Then let's see how much you've developed your Tekkai," Garp suggested.

Without even waiting for a reply, he leaped out of his chair and over the table, pulling his arm back for a punch as he approached his target. Already having been on edge, Naruto prepared his Tekkai in moment, planning to take the attack head on. However, as Garp neared him, Naruto's senses were assaulted by an aura of some type that felt very much like what Blackbeard had used before making a pincushion out of him.

Not wanting to see what a Haki aided punch from Garp would do to him, Naruto quickly dodged out of the way, letting the vice admiral's punch break a hole in the wooden floor.

"Why did you dodge that?" Garp asked in annoyance.

"You were using Haki!" Naruto shouted angrily. "You don't expect me to just stand there and let you beat me up, do you?"

"Ah, that's right, Tekkai doesn't work against Haki," Garp declared. "I forgot about that. Anyway, where did you learn Haki?"

"I only know about Haki," Naruto admitted. "I've been trying to practice it myself, but I'm at a bit of a loss. It just doesn't feel like anything is happening."

"You can't feel your own Haki," Garp informed him. "Haki is about will, and it's not like you want to hurt yourself."

"Really?" Naruto asked excitedly. "So you just need to train with someone else to see if you're making progress?"

"Yeah, like this," Garp declared, turning to another marine who was standing guard at door.

Garp just stared at him, but the man looked as if he'd taken a physical blow. His eyes then rolled up into the back of his head and he fell to the ground unconscious.

"Is he alright," Naruto asked worriedly.

"He'll be fine," Garp assured him. "He'll probably wake up in a few hours."

Wait, that time Naruto had assumed Kiba had fallen asleep while steering, hadn't he been in the middle of practicing his Haki? Perhaps he'd been making much more progress than he'd realized.

"Great, then let me know if you feel anything," Naruto told Garp.

Then he sat down on the floor and tried to remember what he was doing right before the ship had lurched beneath him. He was so focused that he only had a moment's warning of an incoming attack, not giving him time to anything but put up a hastily formed Tekkai. One that did little to protect him from Garp's blow.

The aging man's punch sent him into the building's wall, which hardly slowed his progress as he continued his flight. He finally landed on pathway and rolled along it, burning off enough momentum that the wall of the second building was able to stop him. Although whoever owned it might want to check that spot's structural integrity. Naruto was sure he'd heard something crack and he was hoping it wasn't one of his bones.

As he climbed back to his feet he saw his tormenter standing about a hundred feet away in the hole of the building he'd just left so dramatically. At least Garp didn't use Haki this time. Although whether that was out of kindness, or so Naruto wouldn't sense it coming, he didn't know. Regardless, the man was laughing uproariously at the sight of his own handiwork, which didn't do much for Naruto's mood.

"What did you do that for?" He asked angrily.

"Do you think your opponent will let you sit down and meditate?" Garp queried. "If you can't use Haki in a real battle it's useless. Now get back in here and we can continue where we left off."

Naruto reluctantly complied. Although he was muttering to himself about idiots who've never heard of taking things one step at a time as he went. This should prove to be good training … if he actually survived it.

* * *

Their time spent watching the Straw Hat Pirates had proved an unexpected stroke of good fortune for Nojiko. She'd been spending as much of her time as she could with Nami. Although their first meeting hadn't gone as well as she'd hoped. She'd been planning to floor her younger sister with the news that they'd captured one of the Shichibukai, keeping to herself the fact that she hadn't actually participated in that fight.

To be fair, Nami had been shocked by the news. But it was Nami who got the better end of the exchange when she announced that it was really her crew, and not Tashigi's old captain that had defeated Crocodile and his criminal organization.

Also, there wasn't much Nojiko could brag about beyond the encounter with Orochimaru. Certainly nothing that could compare to traveling to Sky Island or rescuing a crew member from Enies Lobby.

To be honest, she was more than a little worried for Nami's safety if they did that sort of thing as regularly as it sounded like they did. Still, outdone or not, it was worth every minute she got to spend with Nami. Although today she was having trouble finding her sister. She was still in the process of looking when she saw Tashigi sprinting her way.

"What's going on?" she called out to the young marine.

"No time to explain," she answered as she ran past. "I've got to find Naruto."

Curious as to what was going on, Nojiko ran after the other woman. She soon found she was having great deal of difficulty keeping up. Thankfully, when she had nearly lost Tashigi, the woman tripped over some fallen roof tiles that hadn't been cleared away yet. The sent her falling to the ground and allowed Nojiko catch up.

She managed not to fall too far behind before she arrived at a midsized building that Tashigi proceeded to enter. The noises emanating from inside gave the impression of quite a commotion going on within the building. Right after Tashigi had entered, a loud crash punctuated the clamor as the building transitioned to silence.

Was Naruto under attack? Was this what Tashigi was in such a hurry about? Suddenly finding herself quite worried she rushed forward and burst through the door that Tashigi had recently entered, knocking said woman over as the door flew open..

"Hey!" Tashigi protested. "Watch it."

Ignoring her, Nojiko scanned the room, but rather than a pirate attack, all she saw was Garp standing over a hole in the floor. A hole that appeared to be one of a rather impressive set that extended to the walls as well. In fact, the whole building was beginning to look decidedly unstable.

"Tashigi, Nojiko, what are you doing here?" Naruto asked.

Until he called out to them, Nojiko hadn't even realized Naruto was in the room. Now she saw him pulling himself up out of the hole Garp was standing by. The state her captain was in was quite shocking as well. His clothes were torn, he had numerous bruises, and he looked to be bleeding from what she hoped were merely cuts. He even had his left eye swollen shut.

"Forget about that, what happened to you?" Nojiko replied forcefully.

"Just a little warming up," Garp answered. "We were about to start the real training."

Nojiko just stared at him mutely trying to determine if he was joking or had snapped in a very dangerous way.

"We don't have time for that," Tashigi interjected. "Their ship is finished and they're preparing to depart. We have to stop them."

Nojiko was expecting Garp to veto that suggestion, but noticed that he'd been pulled aside by one of his subordinates who was now discussing something with him.

"Fine!" Garp finally yelled out. "If Sengoku says I have take care of Luffy, than I'll do as he says. Luffy made his own decision, anyway, now he'll have to live with it."

"We'll help you capture him," Naruto offered.

"That won't be necessary," Garp assured him. "If I can't handle my own grandson I don't deserve my rank."

With that he stormed out of the building, using one of the holes in the wall rather than the door.

"We have to do something," Tashigi insisted. "He was doing his best to protect Luffy; you can't believe he'll actually seriously try to capture him."

It was a great relief to Nojiko that she agreed with Tashigi's assessment. Garp would simply put on a show but make sure Luffy somehow got away. They were family after all, there's no way he could bring himself to harm family.

"I'm not entirely convinced that's the case," Naruto declared. "But at the very least we should go watch how this all plays out."

What did Naruto mean by that? He was just trying to appease Tashigi wasn't he? They had proof that Garp didn't want Luffy captured and was willing to go against marine creed when it suited him.

Then again, she took another look at Naruto and realized that if this was something Garp did to a fellow marine he was training, could they trust him to show restraint against anyone?

"Let's hurry," she told them, following Garp out the hole and breaking into a run.

* * *

By the time they made it back to the ship, the Straw Hat Pirates were already sailing off in their new vessel. In addition, Garp's ship had left dock and was giving pursuit. Naruto's clones were already finishing preparations for their own departure, but Luffy already had a head start, and Naruto wasn't confident they'd be able to match the other ship in speed.

If anyone was going to stop them, it would probably be Garp. And if that pile of cannonballs next to Garp was any indication he was planning to do just that.

"What's he doing with those?" Tashigi asked. "Shouldn't they be firing their cannons?"

"He's planning to do worse than that," Naruto informed them.

"What do you mean?" Nojiko queried, understandably sounding worried by his statement.

Rather than explain, Naruto just motion toward Garp as he began rapidly hurling the cannonballs harder than any cannon could hope to match. His aim was impeccable as well, with all of them descended upon the pirate ship. But rather than tearing through the hull, every last projectile was intercepted by the pirate crew.

Naruto had to admit that it was an impressive display. Their captain didn't even seem to be paying attention to the attacks anymore, instead focusing on something happening on shore. Naruto tried to locate whatever had drawn Luffy's interest and spotted a familiar figure.

"Is that Usopp?" he asked aloud.

"They're even willing to abandon one of their own crew members to save their own hides?" Tashigi asked disgustedly.

"Stop jumping to conclusions!" Nojiko ordered angrily. "See, Luffy just rescued him."

Sure enough, Luffy had made use of his special ability to extend an arm all the way back to shore and pull in the wildly flailing Usopp.

"So you're saying they would have waited for him if he hadn't shown up just then?" Tashigi asked.

Naruto was going to try to break up their argument, but found himself suddenly at a loss for words as he caught sight of what Garp was doing just then. He had pulled out what had to be the most massive metal sphere in existence. The monstrosity was connected by a proportionally huge chain. Garp then proceeded to lift the whole thing with his bare hands and launch it into the air.

"Nami!" Nojiko cried out, running to toward the edge of the ship, despite surely knowing there was nothing she could do.

The oversized cannonball was larger than the ship it was hurtling toward. Was Garp really trying to kill them all? Luffy might actually survive if someone could pull him out of the water fast enough. Maybe some of the others would abandon ship fast enough as well.

Naruto had barely registered that their ship had started to inch away from the dock, but now he was already setting course for the soon to be wreck to see if there would be anyone they could rescue. But what happened next was probably even more shocking than the attack itself.

The pirate ship shot out from underneath the cannonball right before being hit, actually shooting into the air at high speed before landing back in the water a distance away. They were all left speechless as the pirates continued to sail away toward the horizon.

The raucous laughter of Garp that could be heard despite the large distance between the two ships wasn't enough to break him from his stupor. Nor was the fact that Garp was making no effort to pursue.

Not even the rocking of the ship as the waves created by Garp's most recent attack reached them got through to him. It was only the ringing of their den den mushi that finally snapped him to his senses. Entering the dining room, he lifted the receiver on the creature.

"Hello," he said simply, still a bit too shaken for a more complicated greeting.

"Ah, Naruto," Kakashi's voice came through from the other end. "I'm glad I got you."

"The Straw Hat Pirates got away," Naruto reported, seeing no point in hiding that fact.

"Well, that's not what I'm calling about," Kakashi responded. "You're being ordered to return to Marinford. It seems there's going to be an inquiry of sorts into the events related to your whole not really dying thing."

"What?" Naruto asked in surprise. "I already explained what happened to you. What need is there for an inquiry?"

"Now, now, calm down," Kakashi answered. "I'm sure it's just standard protocol or something. They probably do this for every marine who reports for duty after they bury his body. Anyway, I'll be showing up personally to explain things to them, so there's nothing to worry about."

That thought was a little reassuring, although it probably would have been more effective if he had a commanding officer who could be considered reliable.

"Very well, when am I supposed to be there for the inquiry?" Naruto asked.

"Ah, there's no need to worry about that," Kakashi told him. "Just leave as soon as possible and I'm sure you'll be fine. I'll see you there."

Naruto quickly realized the connection was now dead. He fought back a surge of annoyance at his commanding officer. After all, it could be worse. He could work for Garp.

"I bet they bust you back down to ensign," Kiba quipped from behind him, where he'd apparently been listening in on the whole conversation.

"You're just as tied up in this whole mess as I am," Naruto reminded him. "What makes you think they would punish me but not you? I'm not even the one who falsely reported a death."

Naruto was pleased to see the smile slip from his friend's face.

"You don't really think we'll get in trouble over that do you?" he asked nervously.

"We didn't do anything wrong," Naruto insisted. "So we shouldn't have any trouble convincing them of that."

He only wished he felt half as confident as sounded.

* * *

**AN**

First off, I'm somewhat annoyed they brought up a G-5 base in the manga recently. I know it's a fairly trivial matter, and I'm likely to ignore any events that occur in the manga from this point on in favor of my current plans. Despite that, I'm still probably OCD enough to go back and change all the references to G-5. So if you find me using a different number in the future, that's why.

Some of you may be annoyed by how I never seem to get any good action scenes with Naruto and Luffy's crew both together. I can assure you, however, that the drought won't last too much longer. Although whether they'll fight as allies or adversaries, I won't say.

Come to think of it, I've been pretty light on the action overall these past few chapters. I don't expect the next chapter to change that either, but for those who enjoy a good fight, the coming arcs have more of them than I know what to do with. I'm honestly a bit intimidated by how I'm going to write some of it.

As a final note before my obligatory begging for reviews, it came to my attention that the website processed my last chapter hours before it processed my update to the prior chapter. So if you read the note at the top of the previous chapter, but found no new content when you followed the instructions, you may want to give it a second chance. You probably just have read the chapter too soon after I posted.

Now, as promised the part I'm sure you'd all prefer I skipped entirely. The part where I try to entice people to review so that I can have my ego stroked. But seriously, I really do appreciate all the great comments and suggestions, so please do continue to offer them.


	15. Chapter 15

The journey to Marineford had not proven to be the most pleasant of trips for Tashigi. She hadn't even had a decent conversation with Naruto since they'd left, much less found time for their usual training. Part of that was that Naruto had been preoccupied with the upcoming inquiry.

For her part, Tashigi wasn't overly worried. Naruto hadn't done anything wrong, and she was confident that whoever was in charge of the inquiry would see that in the end. They were only being diligent. She did, however, have her own concern that was keeping her similarly distracted.

Namely that fact that Nojiko just wasn't right for Naruto. Naruto was a marine officer, after all, and one of the most promising officers she'd ever seen. Granted Tashigi would now admit that Nojiko wasn't really a bad person. She just had a bit of a twisted sense of justice. Especially when her sister was involved.

She was already trying to convince Naruto that not all pirates deserved incarceration. A relationship between them would only make it easier for Nojiko to corrupt him. The hard part, however, was figuring out how to stop her. There were several things she could try, but she was afraid Naruto might become upset with her interference.

Actually, there was one thing she'd been considering. She might be able to find someone more suitable for Naruto and convince him that they would make a better couple than him and Nojiko. The one problem was that there really wasn't anyone available besides herself.

Although she supposed that, lacking any alternatives, it wouldn't be too terrible if she took the role herself. It was for Naruto's own good after all. Yes, the more she considered it the more certain she was that that was the right choice.

In fact, there really wasn't any point to delaying. The next time she was alone with Naruto, she'd work up her courage and ask him to go to dinner or something like that. Nojiko had done it easily enough. And if Nojiko could do it, Tashigi was certain she could as well. Yes, at the first opportunity she'd definitely go for it.

* * *

Marineford was just as impressive as Naruto remembered it. Although he wished he was returning under better circumstances. Still, the journey had actually served to settle his nerves. The more he thought about it, the less he believed he had anything to fear. Sure they might take away his promotion, but if they did he'd just earn it back.

After all, there wasn't anything he'd done that could really get him in trouble. He'd set the records straight and the matter of his death himself, and he had done so as quickly as he'd been able to. Beyond that, he couldn't think of any actions he'd taken related to the incident that had been questionable.

As they were pulling up to the port, Naruto noticed a marine standing there waving frantically at them. Curious, he moved to the edge of the ship to see what was going on.

"Are you Namikaze Naruto?" the man asked.

"That's right," Naruto answered. "Can I help you?"

"I've was ordered to bring you to the courtroom as soon as you arrived," he replied. "Please come with me."

Why did the man seem so eager to be off when they hadn't even landed? Was the inquiry starting soon? They hadn't exactly been given a lot of notice if that were the case. Maybe he should let the others handle the ship and go with him now.

"Nojiko and I will help your clones dock the ship," Shino told him as if reading his mind.

"Hey, I didn't volunteer to stay behind," Nojiko complained.

"It's doubtful they would allow civilians to attend a marine inquiry," Shino pointed out. "So there's little point in our going with him."

"Well, I'm a marine, and I'm not about to stay behind," Kiba announced.

"I'm coming too," Tashigi added.

"Very well," Naruto assented. "Let's not make our guide wait any longer."

They were just preparing to anchor the ship, so Naruto was easily able to jump over the railing and land next to the waiting marine. Tashigi, Kiba, and Akamaru quickly followed.

"Right this way then, sir," the marine told him, before hurrying off away from the ship.

As they followed the man through the twists and turns of the crowded city, Naruto was grateful they had a guide. He hadn't done much to familiarize himself with Marineford during his stay, and he suspected he could easily become quite lost in this place.

The man finally stopped in front of a large, plain looking building. Although what surprised Naruto the most was that it wasn't the marine flag flying above the entrance; it was the flag of the World Government. Maybe it didn't mean anything. After all the Marine Force was part of the World Government.

"Please wait inside," their guide instructed them.

Naruto wanted the question the man further, but he'd already hurried off back down another street, leaving them on their own.

"I guess there's nothing to do but go inside," Naruto declared.

As they went to enter, a man who was standing guard at the door blocked their way.

"No animals inside the building," he told them.

"What?" Kiba protested. "Akamaru isn't some common animal. He's my partner, and a fellow marine."

"I don't care if he can perform an opera, he still can't come inside," the guard insisted.

The man blocking their way had a sheathed sword strapped to his side. He looked pretty confident as well, but Naruto doubted anyone who would be a threat to them would be performing common guard duty. He could just force the fool out of his way and enter.

Of course Naruto couldn't see his own expression at the moment, but something in it looked to have spooked the guard, who instinctively shrank back away from him. This did serve to bring Naruto back to his senses. He wasn't seriously considering forcing his way into his own inquiry was he?

"We don't want to make a scene," Naruto told Akamaru. "I'm sorry, but can you wait out here?"

Akamaru whined a little, but found a spot near the door to lie down. Satisfied by their compliance, the guard moved out of the way and let them enter the building. Naruto found himself in, what appeared to be, a courtroom, but other than the three of them it looked to be unoccupied.

"I don't know what his hurry was," Tashigi declared. "We seem to be early."

"I guess we wait until someone shows up," Naruto suggested finding a seat in the front row.

Tashigi and Kiba sat down next to him and the three of them waited as the minutes dragged on. Naruto could tell that he wasn't the only one being bothered by the wait. Annoyance was plainly painted on Kiba's face and Tashigi couldn't stop fidgeting.

They would probably pass the time more easily if someone struck up a conversation, but the mood had become such that Naruto was hesitant to break the silence himself. So it was somewhat of relief when Tashigi did so for him.

"Akamaru has been out there alone for a while now," she pointed out. "Maybe you should check on him, Kiba."

"He'll be fine," Kiba assured her. "He can take care of himself."

Tashigi actually looked frustrated by his response. Had she been hinting that she wanted Kiba to leave? If so, Kiba didn't seem to pick up on that fact. But she let the matter drop and the room returned to silence for a few more minutes. However, Tashigi soon spoke up a second time.

"We might be here a while," she declared. "Do you think you could grab us something to eat, Kiba?"

There was little doubt she was dropping a hint this time, and he had to admit he was curious as to what she wanted to speak with him about.

"If you're hungry you can go get food yourself," he replied. "I'm staying here."

"I think she wants to speak with me alone," Naruto cut in.

"I know that," Kiba responded. "I just wanted to see how long I could keep this up before she came right out and said it. Why'd you have to go and spoil my fun?"

Naruto just glared at him in reply.

"Fine, I'm going," Kiba declared, walking down the row to the opposite end of the room. "I'll just be waiting over here."

Now that Kiba was out of the way, he expected Tashigi to speak up, but she went back to fidgeting, looking hesitant to say anything. Could she know something about this inquiry she was afraid to mention? Concluding he'd waited long enough to be polite he decided to encourage her to talk.

"You know you can tell me anything, right?" he asked.

Thankfully his words had their intended effect as she finally began speaking.

"I've been wanting to say this for a while," she declared. "I was wondering if you wanted to ..."

Her sentence was interrupted abruptly by the sound of a door opening on the opposite side of the room from where they'd entered. Two men walked in wearing the same black outfit the guard outside had been wearing, leading Naruto to realize it was a uniform of some sort. It wasn't any uniform he recognized, and they certainly weren't marines.

"All rise for the honorable Magistrate Chiyo," one of the men called out.

Naruto quickly rose to his feet watching as a woman who had to be less than five feet tall and looked older than the mayor back on Leaf Island strode in. She quickly took her seat at the bench, flanked on either side by the guards. Seeing her seated, Naruto sat back down himself.

"I'm glad you could make it," she declared dryly. "Although I'd recommend in the future that you don't show up two days late to your own trial. It's not the best way to make a good impression."

"Two days late?" Naruto asked in bewilderment. "We came as soon as we were instructed to."

"Then you must have made a very leisurely trip," she snapped back. "You were summoned here the very same day it was reported you were still alive."

He was summoned that long ago and Kakashi hadn't mentioned anything? He couldn't believe how irresponsible the man was. Naruto supposed he couldn't rely on him to keep his word about showing up for Naruto's defense either.

"It's not his fault," Tashigi declared. "We were informed of this less than two days ago. So it wouldn't have even been possible for us to show up on time."

"Quiet girl," Chiyo ordered. "I don't care to hear your excuses. His being late does not endear him to me, but it's materially irrelevant. I'll see that he receives a fair trial."

"You keep saying this is a trial," Naruto pointed out. "I thought it was just an inquiry."

"That's what we told you so you wouldn't run," she responded. "There are some very serious charges filed against you. You'll be given a chance to face your accuser and argue in your defense before I give my verdict."

"And who is my accuser?" Naruto asked.

"That would be me," a voice answered as the door in the back of the room opened a second time.

Through the now open door strode in none other than that jerk, Mizuki, the guy from back when he got his first assignment. Mizuki took a position standing near the bench and looking down on Naruto.

"I knew you were trouble from the first day I met you," he declared. "After all, you were practically lauding your father's decision to disobey his orders."

"That's not what happened!" Kiba protested, jumping angrily to his feet. "He was just defending his father's honor from you. Just because the man chose family loyalty over loyalty to the marines doesn't mean you can insult him like you did."

"Be that as it may," Mizuki continued calmly, "that was a good example of how rude and disrespectful the two of you were during the whole process. Nevertheless, I maintained some small hope you were just lacking in manners and gave you a respectable assignment. If I'd had more foresight, I would have attempted to have you relieved of your commissions."

Naruto didn't know whether to be grateful to Kiba for defending him, or upset that he was doing such a poor job of it. Mostly, however, he was preoccupied with what the actual charges were, as such information had still not been made clear to him.

"I can't say I was terribly surprised to hear you caused trouble so quickly," Mizuki went on. "However, even I wasn't expecting how deep your corruption went."

"And what exactly is it you're saying I'm guilty of?" Naruto asked, doing his best to rein in his dislike of the man.

"I'm accusing you of treason," he answered.

"That's absurd!" Tashigi cried out. "He's done nothing to warrant such a charge."

"Thank you for the wonderful piece of evidence," Chiyo replied sarcastically. "I was convinced he was guilty, but seeing you stand there and yell out that he's not, I don't see how his innocence could be in doubt."

Her words left Tashigi clearly embarrassed by her outburst as she shrunk back from the small woman.

"Now if you're willing to wait until the evidence is actually presented maybe we can get something productive done," she continued.

"Thank you, your honor," Mizuki told her. "Now, since you're going to play innocent, allow me to start with a bit of a story. This starts with a pirate named Blackbeard. He was a man who wanted very much to be one of the Shichibukai."

Mizuki seemed to be enjoying himself immensely. Naruto wanted to wipe that smug look off his face, but his companions' outbursts had already made it clear that it was best to just let him continue for now.

"There were a couple of major obstacles, however," Mizuki continued. "The biggest one was that there were no openings. However, quite conveniently for him, you remove one of the Shichibukai that were in his way. And his removal was based on charges and crimes witnessed only by you and your crew. Beyond that, you admitted in your report that pirates aided you in capturing Orochimaru."

"Those pirates had nothing to do with Blackbeard," Naruto declared, suspecting he knew where Mizuki was going with this.

"You can't seriously be suggesting that Naruto is secretly working for a pirate?" Tashigi asked in disbelief, apparently coming to the same conclusion he had. "He's a marine officer."

"You're more foolish than I'd suspected if you think marine officers can't turn to piracy," Chiyo told her. "We don't generally advertise the fact, but it happens all too often. Even the captain of the Drake pirates is a former Rear Admiral. Given such a decorated officer could go bad, I see no reason to trust a brat fresh out of the academy."

"Exactly," Mizuki agreed. "Now look at it from Blackbeard's point of view. What better way to remove one of the Shichibukai than to get an agent in the Marines? One who could manufacture evidence of nonexistent crimes. One who could approach Orochimaru without causing suspicion, then bring along a gullible crew of marines to help subdue him while he's caught off guard."

"Hey, Orochimaru is the one who attacked us," Kiba protested.

"And you're certain he wasn't provoked in some manner?" Mizuki asked. "Did he even admit to any crime?"

"Well ... no," Kiba answered hesitantly before taking on a new look of determination. "But we did see Kabuto experimenting on civilians with our own eyes. That obviously wasn't made up."

Kiba had him there. Naruto had no idea why Mizuki was so determined to cause trouble for him, but he obviously didn't have much of a case, just wild accusations. He'd win this easily.

"Maybe you're right," Mizuki conceded. "Maybe Orochimaru was involved in human experimentation behind our backs. Even if that's true, Blackbeard could have just ordered Naruto to take advantage of that fact. There's also no proof that Kabuto wasn't working on his own. He could have even been another of Blackbeard's agents."

"You're doing a lot of speculating," Naruto declared, "but that's all it is. Just because my actions may have helped Blackbeard doesn't mean I was working for him."

"You're right of course," Mizuki admitted. "If that's all there was to it, no one would think twice about it. However, it's not just one occurrence. It's a regular pattern that, when examined all at once, seems far too much to be a simple coincidence."

"Then enlighten me," Naruto instructed him. "I can't even think of what this pattern might be myself, so I don't see how it can be all that convincing."

"Very well," Mizuki began. "The next piece of the puzzle relates to the second obstacle Blackbeard encountered. There was now an opening in the Shichibukai. But how was he to take advantage of that when no one had even heard of him? Defeating the marine who had captured Orochimaru would be a good start to raising his notoriety. And with you 'dead' it would put off any suspicions that the two of you might have been working together."

"Two events hardly count as a convincing pattern," Tashigi interjected. "And there's nothing else we've done that had any connection to Blackbeard."

Naruto agreed with Tashigi. It looked like this farce was about to wrap up. Mizuki was out of tricks to play. So why was it that he still had that irritatingly smug look?

"So it seems," he replied calmly. "However, it all becomes clear when you realize there's a third party involved in this little conspiracy. Namely, the Straw Hat Pirates."

"What do they have to do with any of this?" Naruto asked in confusion.

"That was a quick response," Mizuki noted. "Have I struck a nerve?"

"There's no nerve to strike," Naruto snapped back. "They don't have anything to do with Blackbeard."

"If you insist on playing dumb, I'll humor you," he declared condescendingly. "I'll pretend you don't know that they're the ones who took down Crocodile. And the only thing Blackbeard would want more than one opening in the Shichibukai is two openings."

"What kind of trick is this?" Tashigi asked. "Captain Smoker ... er … Commodore Smoker was the one who defeated Crocodile."

"That's what we've told the public," Chiyo interjected. "But Mizuki is correct."

Inwardly, Naruto's mind was racing, trying to figure out how this revelation affected his case. Mizuki, however, was on the offensive now and wasn't going to give him much reprieve.

"Now then, according to your own reports, you've run across the Straw Hat Pirates on two separate occasions," he declared. "Although there is one part of the reports that must be a mistake, because it claims that both times you simply let them go."

"I didn't even know he was a pirate the first time I met him," Naruto protested. "How was I supposed to? He didn't even have a bounty yet."

"How convenient for the both of you," Mizuki deadpanned. "But you did know by the second time you met, right? Yet you still let them go. And Lieutenant Tashigi's report on the incident reveals the decision was made over her own protests."

Naruto instinctively glanced over to Tashigi. He wasn't really angry with her, even if this did hurt his case, but she shrunk back from him regardless.

"That's not fair," she said weakly. "You can't expect to always agree with your superior's decisions. That doesn't mean there was anything wrong with the decision he made."

"And I only let them go at the request of Princess Vivi of Arabasta," Naruto added.

"You expect me to believe the princess personally requested you let a band of pirates go?" Mizuki questioned.

"No, I believe his claim," Chiyo stated firmly.

"You can't be serious, your honor," Mizuki protested.

"I'm quite serious, and if you weren't such a fool you'd see why yourself," she answered harshly. "Why would he make a claim that would be so easy to prove a lie?"

Mizuki looked taken aback by her reply, but it gave Naruto a bit of hope. The magistrate had been on his crew's case so much since the start of the trial he was beginning to suspect she was biased against him. Now it became apparent she was just a cranky old crone.

"And don't think I won't check your story just because I believe it," she added, addressing Naruto. "But we already know she was involved with other criminal elements, so dealing with pirates doesn't seem like much of a stretch."

"It also changes little," Mizuki stated, having regained his composure. "Blackbeard, Luffy, and yourself just seem to run into each other far too often to be coincidence. You are aware that Luffy arrived in Mock Town shortly before yourself, are you not? We even have a report from one of our spies that he met with Blackbeard. The two of them are reported to have gotten along quite well."

"So your proof is that we run into each other a lot?" Kiba asked dismissively.

"Let's look at the big picture, shall we?" Mizuki asked. "Since coming to the Grand Line you've run across a number of pirates. Yet between the Straw Hat Pirates and the Burning Skull Pirates, your encounters seem to end amicably far too often."

"Twice is hardly far too often," Naruto argued.

"That's just what you've reported," he countered. "And even then, I know of no other marines who can match it. In fact, the only pirates you've actually captured are Orochimaru, Bellamy, and their lackeys. One was a Shichibukai who Blackbeard needed out of his way, and the other worked for one of his rivals for the new opening you'd just made."

Mizuki was a snake; there was no two ways around it. As angry as he was at the man, he had to admit it was impressive how skillfully he was twisting the facts to further his accusations.

"I've made my case, your honor," Mizuki announced confidently.

"Very well, do you have anything further to say in your defense?" the magistrate asked Naruto.

"Just that he doesn't have one spec of actual evidence," Naruto insisted. "He's trying to sway you with possibilities to hide the fact that there's no substance. And there isn't any substance because there's nothing to find. The whole production is a joke."

"If that's all ..." she began, pausing until she was satisfied Naruto wasn't going to continue, "then I've reached my verdict. You are correct that there simply isn't the evidence to convict you of any crime."

"Take that, jerk," Kiba gloated.

For his part Naruto chose a more reserved response and simply let out a sigh of relief.

"However," Chiyo continued, "with the situation as suspicious as it is, it would be the height of foolishness to allow you to continue on your way. If you truly are working for Blackbeard, there must be something he wants that convinced him to bring you back from the dead. I suspect your posthumous promotion to captain would have had something to do with that."

Naruto knew he should be worried about what she was about to say next. The overly cheerful look that was plastered on Mizuki's face, however, left him with little room for any emotion beyond anger.

"Therefore," Chiyo proclaimed, "I am suspending you from duty in the Marine Force. In addition, you will not be permitted to leave Marineford pending further investigation."

"You can't do that!" Tashigi protested, finding words that seemed to escape a stunned Naruto at the moment. "He's one of the finest officers I've ever met. Punishing him like this is a huge mistake."

"I've made my decision," Chiyo fired back. "I'm not going to be swayed into reversing it by overly emotional pleas."

"Wait!" a voice yelled out from behind Naruto as the doors burst open.

Turning around, he was shocked to see Kiba's mother strolling through the door.

"Mom?" Kiba shouted out. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm curious about that as well, Commodore Tsume," Mizuki added.

"I found out about this little trial and was reading through that report of yours," she answered.

"That wasn't supposed to be publicly available," Mizuki complained.

"I don't care what it was supposed to be," she told him. "I got my hands on a copy and I believe I have information relevant to this trial, if the magistrate will permit it."

"You may continue," Chiyo answered.

"Good," Tsume stated simply. "Now, the first thing that caught my eye in your report was the part where you claimed that Naruto has a long history of disregard for authority. Yet I can't find a single reported incident of him every disobeying an order."

"He stole a ship and ran off," Mizuki pointed out.

"He took a ship that was under marine control out to do marine work," Tsume countered. "He may not have been ordered to do so, but neither was he forbidden from it. That doesn't sound like theft or disregard for authority to me. The only thing that makes him guilty of is being a reckless fool. And how many young marines aren't guilty of that from time to time?"

"These days?" Chiyo asked rhetorically. "I doubt there are any."

"The only difference," she went on, "is that rather than simply getting drunk and causing trouble with the locals, he actually did some good with his reckless actions."

"That's only one small incident," Mizuki insisted. "I don't know how thoroughly you've read my report, but there is a veritable mountain of evidence against him."

"Like his fight with Blackbeard that you believe he lost on purpose?" Tsume asked. "I'm surprised you didn't question me on that fight considering I witnessed it myself."

"I read your report," he replied. "If you feel that was lacking perhaps you should be more thorough in the future."

"Let me add something anyway," she insisted. "I've seen more than my share of combat during my career, so I know a thing or two about fighting. And if that fight was staged, then those two got into the wrong career because they should have taken up acting. If anything Blackbeard was the one holding back, but Naruto was clearly seriously fighting his opponent. And you could tell that Blackbeard really intended to kill him at the end. You just can't fake stuff like that."

"Far be it from me to question your proclaimed inability to be fooled," Mizuki replied facetiously. "But there's also the matter of the sheer number of suspicious encounters between relevant parties."

"If that was all a conspiracy Naruto here must be the luckiest villain in the world," Tsume declared. "Considering that since he arrived in the Grand Line, every encounter you mention in your report was only possible because Naruto was following orders. It's convenient how he always seems to be ordered to go exactly where he wants to be."

Naruto could hug Tsume right now, although that might be a bit awkward with Kiba in the room. On the other hand, he did kind of want to kick himself for not thinking of these arguments himself. In his defense, it could hardly be considered fair to drop this trial on him without giving him a chance to prepare. That was probably part of Mizuki's plot as well.

"You forget that they could have met up with Naruto after his orders were given," Mizuki pointed out.

"Then it's lucky that they were always close enough to his destination to get there before him," she countered. "I also doubt Orochimaru and Kabuto would have cooperated in their own capture, so that at least would have to be attributed to good fortune."

Mizuki opened his mouth to argue further but Tsume cut him off.

"And before you even suggest it, I spoke to Rear Admiral Kakashi myself," she informed him confidently. "He assures me that it was his own decision to give Naruto those missions. No one planted the idea in his head."

Judging by the frustrated look on Mizuki's face, she had correctly predicted what his argument would be.

"Also along that line," she continued. "I specifically ordered Naruto to capture Blackbeard. That piece of information was in my report but you somehow overlooked mentioning it in your own. That must have been the greatest piece of luck of all. To be ordered to capture the very person he was planning to throw a fight against."

Mizuki now had the look of a man backed into a corner. He did not, however, seem ready to admit defeat.

"Your honor, given how biased the commodore would naturally be in the case, we can hardly accept her testimony is entirely honest," he insisted. "After all, any conviction of Naruto would reflect poorly on her son. He'd either be convicted as an accomplice or reprimanded for being oblivious to what was going on around him."

"In funny you should bring up the matter of bias," Tsume told him with a predatory grin. "I was reading over your personnel file and noticed something that would bring your own objectivity into question."

"You had no right to read that!" Mizuki protested angrily.

"You're really trying to claim a commodore doesn't have the right to look over personnel files?" she asked.

"I object your honor," he announced. "The information in that file is personal and irrelevant to this case."

"Overruled," Chiyo replied. "It sounds relevant enough to me."

"Now then," Tsume began explaining. "It turns out that Mizuki here was assigned to the task force sent to apprehend the Shanks. The one that Admiral Minato was supposed to head. Well, they successfully located him as he was still recovering from his injuries and confronted his crew."

"Yes, yes," Mizuki interrupted, "and thanks to Minato's refusal to go with us, we lost the fight. Everyone already knows that story."

"I would hardly just call it losing," Tsume replied. "Despite his wounds, Shanks ordered his crew to stay back. Then he single-handedly, in both meanings of the word, defeated the entire task force."

It was kind of nice to know why Mizuki was such a jerk toward him. Sure he overreacted to a piece of misfortune that happened in his life, but at least there was a reason behind it.

"But here's where it gets good," she continued. "Shanks didn't kill a single member of the task force. He just beat them up, sunk their ships, stripped them to their underwear, then stuffed them into their life boats and let them row to the nearest town. Everyone who was on that mission became an instant laughing stock."

"I fail to see how this transparent attempt to humiliate me has any purpose," Mizuki snapped.

"I also saw you haven't had a single promotion since that day," Tsume replied. "That's too bad really. Your file claims you used to be such a promising young officer. I suppose it's not surprising to see you upset that the man's son is rising through the ranks so quickly. You just have to accept that it's possible for him because he isn't a failure."

A small part of Naruto was beginning to feel sorry for Mizuki as the story played out. The rest of him, however, greatly enjoyed watching Tsume put him in his place.

"I am not a failure!" Mizuki yelled out, something inside him seeming to have finally snapped. "And I have a right to be upset! Shanks is a monster. None of you would have done any better against him. Not anyone in this room. Not the people who laughed. Not those who passed me up for promotions and shoved me off into this dead end desk job."

"Mizuki, calm down this instant or I'll have you removed from my court," Chiyo threatened.

"I will not calm down!" Mizuki shouted back. "Not until this traitor who inherited his father's treacherous blood is properly punished!"

"You poor man," Tsume told him, sounding genuinely pitying. "You actually believe he's guilty, don't you?"

"Of course I believe it; he is guilty!" Mizuki raged.

"That's it," Chiyo interjected. "Remove him from the building."

The two guards, who had stood silently so far, converged on the fuming Mizuki. One of them grabbed his arm only to find himself flying through the air as Mizuki seized the offending arm and threw the man into his companion.

"I'm not leaving this room!" he screamed. "I'm ..."

Tsume didn't let him finish his sentence, instead dashing forward and planting a fist square in his face. Mizuki crumpled to the ground, lying there unmoving, blood pouring from a clearly broken nose.

"Forgive the presumption, your honor," Tsume said cheerfully.

"I'm just glad you shut him up," Chiyo replied. "But if you ever have reason to enter my court again, I'd prefer if you don't deliberately provoke anyone. I'm not fond of scenes like that. Now get him out here."

The last bit was said to the two guards who had recovered from their recent tumble. Grabbing the unconscious Mizuki between them they proceeded to drag from the room.

"Now I have considered the new evidence presented," Chiyo proclaimed, "in addition to the revelation that Mizuki's report was most likely deliberately manipulated to appear as damaging as possible. In light of these facts, I'm going to alter my previous judgment."

"That's great!" Tashigi cheered.

"Let me finish, girl," she snarled out. "You're free to go and continue your duties on one condition."

"What would that be?" Naruto asked.

"I will be assigning an agent to join you temporarily," Chiyo answered. "Mizuki did make an thought provoking case and my concerns have not been completely satisfied. My agent will travel with you until such a time as they are. I'll have him meet you at your ship."

"Understood," Naruto answered.

He was a bit reluctant about having this 'agent' forced on him, but he'd reserve final judgment at least until he met the man. He wasn't exactly in a position to protest anyway.

"And do I get to keep my rank?" Naruto asked.

"Fool," she replied sharply. "I work for the World Government not the marines. That isn't up to me, so take it up with your superiors. Unless they're half-witted buffoons, though, I wouldn't count on it. Rank is something that should be gained over time, after you've had a chance to gain experience. Not just rewarded because you're stronger in a fight than your peers."

"By that logic shouldn't you be queen of the world by now?" Kiba quipped.

Chiyo glared at him, but for once refrained from using that acid tongue of hers.

"Now, I've had enough of all this nonsense," she announced. "This court is adjourned."

After saying so, she wasted little time in departing back through the door she'd entered.

"Thanks for coming to our rescue," Tashigi told Tsume, bowing respectfully. "You were very impressive."

"I was pretty good, wasn't I?" she beamed proudly, then turned to Naruto. "So, we're even now, right?"

"As far as I'm concerned we are," he answered.

"Great," she replied before quickly swiveling around. "And where do you think you're going, Kiba?"

Turning his attention to his friend, he saw that Kiba had been caught just before reaching the door he'd been trying to sneak out of.

"I'm just going to check on Akamaru," he answered. "He had to wait outside all this time."

"Fine," she replied, much to Kiba's delight. "Your sister is out there anyway, and I told her not to let you run off."

It was clear she'd just succeeded in dashing the very hopes she'd just inspired in her son. Nevertheless Kiba slunk out the door.

"I swear, sometimes I wonder about that boy," Tsume muttered.

"Wait!" a voice called out as the doors flung open behind Naruto in a manner that seemed to mirror Tsume's earlier entrance.

This time, however, it was Kakashi who strode in. He was exuding confidence as he entered, but that quickly faded into confusion when he saw the state of the room.

"Huh? Am I here early?" he asked.

"The trial is already over," Naruto informed him. "Thanks for your help, by the way."

"Ah, you can't blame me for being late this time," he protested. "I can't go any faster than my ship will take me, after all."

"That's funny," Tsume interjected, "because I was sure I saw your ship already docked when I arrived."

"Well, you know how marine ships all tend to look alike," he replied.

"Really?" she asked him. "So it has nothing to do discovering that Chiyo would be in charge of the trial? I heard that was some family history between her and your father. I just assumed you were cowering in fear."

"And why did you wait so long to tell us about the trial?" Naruto asked none-too-politely. "We were two days late."

"Well you see, it was my aide that took that message," he claimed. "But then she came down with the flu and I didn't hear a thing about it until right before I called you."

"Which aide was that?" Tashigi asked, sounding genuinely concerned. "She has recovered, right?"

"Ah, well she wouldn't want you to worry over her," he replied. "Anyway, I assume your trial went well."

"No thanks to you," Tsume told him.

"Well, as long as this is taken care of I have a new mission for you," Kakashi told them. "We've received reports that quite a number of rather high bounty pirates have been converging on the Sabaody Archipelago. I was hoping you could see about putting one or two of them behind bars."

"Just what are you getting my son into this time?" Tsume asked dangerously.

"Don't worry," Kakashi assured her. "They may have large bounties, but that's mostly because they've been rampaging through the Grand Line causing as much trouble as they can. These are all rookie pirates we're talking about, no one too famous. I'm sure they can handle it."

This new mission sounded great to Naruto. After the stress of this trial, it would be great to let loose and show some pirates the fruits of all his recent training. They won't even know what hit them.

* * *

Having finally managed to get Kiba safely away from his mother, the three marines and one dog returned to the ship where the last two members of the crew were waiting. Seeing them coming, Nojiko ran down the ramp to greet him, not even giving him a chance to board.

"How did it go?" she asked excitedly.

"Everything has been sorted out," he assured her. "There's just one small problem."

"What's that?" she asked.

"I believe he's referring, rather rudely I might add, to me," a man answered from next to him.

He was a thin man, a couple inches shorter than Naruto who looked to be somewhere in his thirties. He had a bandana wrapped around his head, which only allowed him to catch a glimpse of the man's dark hair where it was uncovered next to his ears. His entire outfit, including the bandana was a solid shade of navy blue.

To top it off he was wearing a pair of sunglasses very similar to Shino's. He was hoping the eyewear was the limit of his resemblance to the mercenary. Naruto got along just fine with Shino, but he could be a bit on the dull side. So he didn't exactly relish the thought of two people with his personality on the ship.

"Let's set things straight," the man said firmly. "My name is Ebisu. I am not a member of your crew and I do not take orders from you. I simply travel with you and do as I like. I highly suggest you answer any questions I may have and spare no effort in granting my requests. If you don't, you may find my report to be less than complimentary."

Having given his speech he turned to look over their ship rather disapprovingly.

"This oversized piece of driftwood can't possibly be your ship, can it?" he asked. "How many hours a day do you spend bailing out water from the leaks? I have half a mind to claim I found incriminating evidence against you, right now, just to avoid getting on this death trap."

Suddenly a second Shino didn't sound too bad after all.

* * *

**AN**

As a little note on this chapter, the part about assigning Ebisu to join them was a very recent decision on my part. I never even considered it until after I'd posted the last chapter. That might not be unusual for some authors, but I have a tendency to plan out my stories many chapters in advance.

However, looking over what I had planned for this one, it just felt far too much like filler to me. (Never mind that I created it for exactly that purpose, to fill the time frame of the Thriller Bark arc.) I just didn't like the idea of a chapter without any lasting impact on the plot, and Ebisu was my answer to that problem.

That said, given his nature of almost being an afterthought, even I don't know yet exactly what I'm going to do with him, or if he'll become a long term member of the crew. I've already worked him into my plans for the next chapter, but in the end I'll just write whatever I think will make for the best story.

If any of you have any thoughts on Ebisu, this chapter, or anything else, I'll be happy to hear them. Feedback is probably the most rewarding part of writing fanfiction, after all.


	16. Chapter 16

Tashigi still hadn't forgiven Kiba for his antics in the courtroom. If he had just taken the hint the first time, she would have had a chance to speak to Naruto alone before the magistrate had come in. The trip to Sabaody hadn't offered her any chances to speak with him either. Not with Ebisu snooping around the ship and sticking his nose into everything.

Anyway, there was little she could do about him. Her primary focus should be on their mission. Having landed at the marine base for the archipelago, Naruto had gone off to see if they had any intelligence on their targets. She could see that he was just returning from that now.

"Find out anything useful?" Kiba called out to him as he was coming up the ramp to the ship.

"No," he answered. "There have been fairly recent sightings of all of them in Sabaody, so they're probably still be around somewhere, but they don't have any details on where."

"They should be keeping a better eye on them," Tashigi complained, wondering who was in charge that who would allow surveillance to become so lax.

"Don't blame them too much," he told her. "They're stretched pretty thin as far as manpower is concerned. Most of their forces have been called away."

"With so many well known pirates here, shouldn't they be sending more marines instead of reassigning them to other locations?" Kiba asked in confusion.

"They do have a good reason for that," Naruto informed them. "It seems that Fire Fist Ace has been captured and he's going to be executed in Marineford."

"I'm sorry," Nojiko interjected. "I'm not familiar with him. But if he's already captured, why would they need to pull troops away from here?"

"Fire Fist Ace is the commander of Whitebeard's second division," Shino answered. "And they're diverting troops because they fear Whitebeard will act to prevent the execution."

"I've heard the stories," Nojiko admitted, "but they can't really be that worried about one pirate can they?"

Tashigi had to agree with Nojiko on this point. Almost certainly Whitebeard's legend had grown to be greater than the actual man.

"If he is foolish enough to attack Marine Headquarters he's only helping us rid the world of him and his men," she declared. "No matter how many people claim he's the strongest man in the world, he won't stand a chance against the admirals."

"You really put a lot of faith in the admirals, don't you?" Nojiko asked her.

"Of course," she confirmed. "Any one of them could take out all of us at once. I doubt they'd even break a sweat doing so on their worst day."

"You put too much faith in their strength," Ebisu claimed from behind her, startling Tashigi, who hadn't even realized he'd been above deck.

"I disagree," she replied. "I'm not disparaging the strength of anyone on this ship, but we just can't compare with the admirals."

"You misunderstand," he responded. "Your assessment of your own chances against them is quite accurate. It's more your confidence that they're enough to stop Whitebeard I find unfounded. All three of them working together, might, and I stress might, be able to defeat him. After all, I've heard rumor he's ill these days."

"And what does a World Government bureaucrat like you know about these things?" she asked frostily, not appreciating his disparaging comments.

"More than you, apparently," he fired back. "Don't forget that in addition to himself, Whitebeard has a horde of many of the vilest and most fearsome pirates alive. If the admirals alone were enough to guarantee victory, they would have sent them to bring back his head long ago. He hasn't exactly been hiding. No, the marines are wise to pull everyone they can into the defense."

There couldn't possibly be anything to what Ebisu was claiming, could there? There had to be some other reason Whitebeard hadn't been captured yet. They probably just couldn't send the admirals into the New World without leaving other areas undefended. After all, there were other pirates to consider, not to mention Dragon and his rebels.

"Back on the subject of our mission," Naruto interjected. "It looks like we're going to have to locate these pirates ourselves. Are you coming with us, Ebisu?"

"No," he answered. "I think I'll stay here. It will give me a chance to search the ship for evidence without you here to obstruct me."

"We haven't been obstructing you," Naruto replied a bit sharply.

"Not that I've noticed," he agreed. "But that may just mean you're very good at it. I'll feel much better with you gone, thank you."

Ebisu wasn't coming with? This gave her an opportunity.

"I suggest we split up into pairs," she announced to the assembled crew. "We'll be able to cover more ground that way."

If she could get paired off with Naruto while they looked around, that would sort of be like a date.

"It would be more prudent to go in two groups of three," Shino declared. "There are many dangerous individuals we could run into."

"We're only going to be doing reconnaissance," Tashigi argued. "If a group runs into anyone it would be risky to handle on their own, they could call for help before confronting them."

"That would be fine if we could be certain they would wait for us to make the first move," Shino countered. "As that's not the case, my recommendation stands."

"I agree with Shino," Naruto stated. "It's better to err on the side of caution. Kiba, Akamaru, and Tashigi can take one of my clones to make one group. Nojiko and Shino will go with me."

Tashigi wanted to protest, but couldn't think of any reason to give him.

"Well, let's get moving," Naruto continued. "I want to get as much done as possible today."

Naruto was already making his way back down the ramp. Meanwhile Tashigi couldn't help but wonder how that had gone so poorly.

* * *

Naruto always hated having to go without his uniform. The right to wear an officer's coat still hadn't lost its luster for him, so he took to wearing it at every opportunity. Still, he knew their safety was more important than his pride, and the pirates they were hunting were dangerous enough that he didn't want to forewarn them that they were marines.

Speaking of their targets, he'd refrained from telling Nojiko about the rumor at he'd heard at the base. The one claiming that the Straw Hat Pirates had just been spotted on the island today. Enies Lobby was still too fresh in his mind to consider letting them go, but he'd rather not have an argument with her over the issue.

"What's that commotion up ahead?" Nojiko asked, interrupting his thoughts.

Looking for himself, he quickly spotted what she was referring to. Just up the street, the crowd was moving to the sides and kneeling. Realizing what must be happening, he followed suit, pulling Nojiko and Shino along with him.

"A tenryuubito," he announced. "I've never seen one before."

He wasn't very fond of kneeling to anyone, but he'd follow decorum rather than make a scene. The man who soon came into view was a somewhat overweight individual who was wearing a glass helmet of some sort on his head.

The most surprising part of the procession, however, was that he looked to be riding a man as if he were a horse. The man had a collar around his neck that was chained to a metal circle in the tenryuubito's hand. There were two other chains connected to the same circle that led off to a pair of scantily clad women that were walking alongside him.

"What's going on?" Nojiko queried.

Naruto didn't have an answer to that, being just as confused as she was. Thankfully, Shino came to his rescue.

"They're slaves of the tenryuubito," he supplied much more calmly than such a declaration would normally entail.

"Slaves?" Naruto whispered back harshly. "He sure is bold to flaunt them with a marine base just a few groves over."

"You must not have been here before," he replied. "There is a strong underground market for slaves on the archipelago. For whatever reason, the marines turn a blind eye to the trade. In addition, even if they did attempt to end the practice, the marines have no authority to confront one of the tenryuubito on the matter."

"What?" Nojiko protested. "You aren't suggesting we just leave them there, are you?"

"Shino is right," Naruto told her reluctantly. "We'd only cause more problems if we got involved. But I can promise you that I'll write all about this in my report."

He'd make sure the report didn't get ignored either. It was hard to believe the corruption ran so deep as to allow a thriving slave trade just a few minutes from a sizable marine base and right next door to Marineford itself.

Nojiko didn't look pleased, but if she intended to argue further she was distracted by two men, dressed as doctors, rushing a man down the street in a stretcher. Their progress was hindered, however, by the tenryuubito, who got off his slave and kicked the stretcher over.

"You dare to move in my presence?" he asked.

Nojiko made a motion to stand, but Naruto quickly restrained her and pulled her back to her knees.

"We'd only make things worse," he declared, although wasn't certain if the words were meant to convince her or himself.

"But sir," one of the doctors called out, "this man is gravely injured and the hospital is right there. We need to get him treatment as quickly as possible."

"You openly defy me?" he asked indignantly. "Such insolence won't go unpunished."

He quickly made good on his threat, pulling out a gun and shooting the doctor, who fell to the ground clutching his stomach. Naruto made no attempt to stop Nojiko from standing this time, instead finding he had jumped to his feet himself without even realizing it.

Indeed, he'd been sure he had several good reasons for wanting to stay uninvolved, but he suddenly found himself unable to recall any. He was already taking his first step forward when the tenryuubito reacted.

"Another worm dares to move in my presence?" he called out angrily.

However, it wasn't them he was addressing. Instead, his attention was solely on Zoro, who was walking boldly down the street toward them. So much for Nojiko not finding out about their presence. The sight did, however, stop the both of them in their tracks.

"Are you talking to me?" Zoro asked distractedly.

Obviously furious at his response, the tenryuubito pulled out his gun a second time. The difference was, this target wasn't about to stand around and get shot. He easily dodged out of the way just before the gun was fired and pulled his sword out of his sheath, preparing to slice through his attacker.

It seemed almost as if some deity was smiling on him. The man would get what he deserved without Naruto getting in trouble over it. However, Zoro had only just pulled his blade from his sheath when he was tackled by some kid. Naruto saw her spill something all over his face before she immediately started bawling over his prone form.

"Big brother!" she cried out. "Why did you go against the tenryuubito? You must have known they would kill you."

"Zoro," Nojiko said weakly, looking horrified at the sight of the red liquid on his face.

"He's fine," he whispered to her, pulling her back down to her knees now that he'd had a chance to regain his senses. "It's just tomato juice or something. The bullet missed him."

She must not have been able to follow that. Neither had the tenryuubito, apparently. Satisfied with the events, the man continued his walk, departing down the street. Looking back at Zoro, he saw that girl who had tackled him was a full grown adult. One he recognized as Jewelry Bonney.

Had his eyes been playing tricks on him? He was sure she'd only been a kid when he'd last looked. Whatever she was, she was busy berating Zoro for his action. Growing tired of her tirade, the swordsman got to his feet and picked up the two wounded men, putting one over each shoulder.

"Do you know where the hospital is?" he asked. "These men look like they need help."

"Huh?" she replied in confusion. "Just leave those nobodies. Who cares about them?"

Naruto's focus was pulled away from the scene by Nojiko yanking on his shirt sleeve to get his attention.

"The tenryuubito is getting away," she pointed out. "Let's go after him."

"Do you have any idea what they would do to us if we actually attacked one of the tenryuubito?" Shino asked her. "The proper course of action would be to follow Zoro and capture him as soon as he moves to a less crowded area."

"We're going after Jewelry Bonney," he announced, not going with either of their plans.

"I would point out that Zoro is simply a swordsman," Shino argued, "and as such is poorly matched against myself. We know little about Bonney, beyond that she can change her shape, somehow."

So Naruto hadn't just imagined that. Still, he was resolute in his decision.

"I just think it's more important to capture her than Zoro," he replied firmly.

"I still don't feel it's the wisest choice," he replied. "Nevertheless I understand your feelings. I'll accept your decision."

"Fine," Nojiko conceded as well. "But I'd still rather be going after that fat piece of trash."

He wouldn't say it out loud, but Naruto agreed with her completely. How could anyone be allowed to just get away with murder and slavery?

* * *

Tashigi was silently berating herself for getting so distracted. They had a mission to do, and that was more important right now than personal relationships. Besides, at least one of Naruto's clones was with Tashigi, and it's not likely Nojiko would try anything with Shino right there.

So she'd put such matters out of her mind and get to work. Pulling her head out of the daze she'd been in, she realized that Kiba had been leading them away from any of the populated areas of the groves for some time now.

"Shouldn't we head to somewhere with more people?" she asked.

"I think you'll like where we're going," Kiba answered. "Akamaru picked up on a familiar scent."

"Just what scent is that?" Naruto's clone asked.

"Why don't see for yourself?" he suggested in reply, pointing further down the path.

Tashigi and Naruto moved up around the yarukiman tree that was blocking them from seeing what he pointed at. When she got a look Tashigi gasped. Less than a hundred yards away was that new ship of the Straw Hat Pirates.

"Wait, so you followed their trail back to the ship?" Tashigi asked. "Shouldn't we have gone the other way to where they are now?"

"I doubt they left their ship undefended," Kiba pointed out. "I say we capture whoever is still here, steal their ship, and force the rest of them to come to us to reclaim it."

"That's not actually a bad plan for you," the clone quipped.

"There's just one point I want to discuss," Kiba declared, beckoning them closer.

"What is it?" Tashigi asked curiously.

"Well, I want to see the look on Naruto's face when we completely blow away anything his group accomplishes by sailing back in the Straw Hat's ship, prisoners in tow," he whispered conspiratorially, causing the both of them to instinctively lean in closer to hear. "But it will lose most of its impact if one of Naruto's clones was helping us."

As soon as he'd finished his sentence, Kiba quickly pulled out a dagger and slashed it across the clone's arm. Having been leaning so close, it didn't have the time to react, and promptly vanished.

"What was that for?" Tashigi complained, raising her voice.

She couldn't believe he'd just done that.

"I just told you," Kiba replied. "Don't you want our group to win?"

"This is a serious mission," Tashigi berated him. "We're not in a competition."

"Whatever you say," Kiba responded dismissively, then perked up a bit. "You know, I just realized that with the clone gone it's just the two of us. That makes this sort of like a date."

"It's nothing like that at all!" Tashigi yelled back at him. "And why are you even thinking of that at a time like this?"

Akamaru didn't look pleased with the comment either, growling at Kiba.

"No, I didn't forget you," he told the dog. "I meant we're the only two humans here. That still counts as a date."

"Forget it," Tashigi ordered sharply. "Let's just plan out how to approach this and hope your little stunt doesn't ruin it for us."

How had it even ended up like this? Why was it that everything seemed to be going wrong today?

* * *

Sanji and Usopp stood looking out at the trio of marines who were standing such that they were partially obscured by a nearby yarukiman tree.

"Do they really expect to stay hidden when they're making all that noise?" he asked rhetorically as he slowly smoked a cigarette he was holding.

He was thinking over what to do about this when his musings were cut short by the ringing of their den den mushi. Walking over and answering it, he found chopper on the other end.

"Camie's been kidnapped!" he immediately sobbed out.

"What?" Sanji screamed back, then quickly composed himself a little. "The timing is horrible too. It looks like the Thousand Sunny may come under attack soon. Tell me, who's with you now."

"Just Brook," he replied. "Luffy, Hachi, and Pappagu already ran off to look for Caime. And Robin and Nami left to go shopping a while back, so they don't even know what's going on."

Sanji quickly considered his options of how best to deal with this situation.

"I want you and Brook to get back to the ship as quickly as possible," he ordered. "I'm going to call the Flying Fish Riders to help us find Caime."

Having giving the order he hung up and called the the former kidnappers just as he'd promised. As fortune would have it, their base was nearby and they'd be here in just a couple of minutes. Now to figure out what to do when they arrived.

"I'm going to go with them," Sanji announced to Usopp, who was listening in from next to him. "I'll try to locate Robin and Nami to let them know what's going on. Then I'll join the search for Caime."

"Oh no," Usopp protested. "You're not leaving me here to defend the ship with only Franky to help. Even if he takes the other two, there's no way I'm going to fight that monster of a dog again."

"Brook and Chopper are on their way," Sanji argued. "You'll be fine."

"What if they have reinforcements too?" Usopp asked. "Besides, you're the one Nami asked to guard the treasure."

How dare Usopp use his own promise against him? He wanted to be the one to rescue Caime.

"You win," he grudgingly admitted. "I'll stay here. But if anything happens to Caime I'm holding you personally responsible."

* * *

They'd been trailing Bonney surreptitiously for some time now, but Naruto knew they would have to make their move soon. It didn't look like they'd been spotted yet, but they'd left the crowded business area from earlier and now seemed to be in a residential zone.

The houses were still packed tightly together, but there much fewer people on the roads, making it harder to go unnoticed. He could plainly see that it only got worse further down the road, as well. The houses further down quickly grew to have rather sizable yards separating them from each other. He was just watching Bonney go around a corner up ahead when a deluge of new memories hit him.

He had to bite back a curse over what he could now recall. Kiba was really being an idiot today. Motioning for his companions to stop, he decided it best to explain the situation, at least in part. It was probably wiser not to tell Nojiko just who Kiba had spotted.

"Kiba located one of our targets," he announced. "Then he gets the bright idea that he should get rid of my clone so I can't take any of the credit for the capture. Shino, can you go and make sure that moron doesn't get himself killed? They're over in grove 41 right now."

"It would be best if we go together," Shino declared. "It's safest if we strike full force against a single target."

Naruto silently mouthed the words 'Straw Hat Pirates' while Shino was still talking, making sure to keep his back to Nojiko. Hopefully Shino was able to read lips. If he could, Shino was smart enough to figure out why he didn't want everyone to go.

"I don't want to lose Bonney," Naruto added for Nojiko's benefit. "We'll just just continue to follow her, though. We won't try anything until you get back."

"Very well," Shino answered. "I recommend you remain cautious while I'm gone."

Nodding one last time, he took off at a run. When he was out of sight, Naruto turned his attention back to the corner Bonney had recently departed around. He only hoped they hadn't lost her during their discussion. He began to continue after her again when he felt a strange tingling throughout his body.

"What's going on?" Nojiko cried out.

His clothes suddenly began to feel very loose, and he was hit by on feeling of vertigo. Turning to see if Nojiko was facing the same strange fate as he was, he was startled to find himself looking up at her. Not only that, but she looked to be in her forties and aging rapidly.

And if she was getting older that must mean that he was getting younger. Indeed his shirt soon became comically large on his new small frame. It actually came as a momentary relief when the process stopped, as he'd feared he end up an infant or worse. Examining himself, he'd estimate he looked no more than five or so.

"I can't see!" Nojiko said, sounding like she was near to panic. "What's happened to me?"

Her voice didn't sound at all normal either. Normally he'd describe it as smooth and almost musical. Now her voice sounded very hoarse and a bit tired. He wouldn't have recognized the woman if he didn't know who she was. Her hair had gone completely white and she was hunched over squinting at the area around her. She might even look older than that magistrate from the trial.

"There, now that you've been effectively neutralized, you're going to tell me why you were following me," Jewelry Bonney called out as she made presence known from a nearby roof before jumping down and landing in front of them. "Then I'll decide what to do with you."

As if to add to her threat, nearly a dozen men, most of them large, burly fellows, made their way out from nearby alleys, surrounded the two of them. This was not an auspicious start to their confrontation.

* * *

The marines hadn't made their move yet by the time Usopp left with the Flying Fish Riders. Perhaps they _were_ waiting for reinforcements as Usopp had suggested. With Brook and Chopper on the way, however, he was content to hold off for now if they were.

The marines, however, weren't as patient as he was, bursting out from behind the tree almost as soon as the the Flying Fish Riders were out of sight. They had probably just been waiting to see what was going on with their guests.

"You'll need handle the swordswoman" he told Franky. "I won't hit a lady. Besides, I've been meaning to get my payback on that barbarian. We'll just have to let whoever the dog goes after deal with him as well until help arrives."

"That should be easy," Franky replied. "I'm feeling super today."

So the two of them jumped off the ship to confront their attackers. Upon seeing Sanji, Kiba quite obligingly altered his course directly for him.

"I'm glad you showed up," Sanji told him when they'd reached each other. "I've been itching to pay you back for that cheap shot in Water 7."

"I'm afraid you're going to end up owing me a lot more than that when I'm finished with you," Kiba replied confidently.

"Unless you're talking about your medical expenses, I highly doubt that," Sanji fired back.

Kiba however had no further interest in their verbal sparring and launched into a vicious attack against Sanji. Sanji was quickly occupied with dodging and blocking the incoming assault. The young marine was downright ferocious in the endless barrages of punches and kicks he sent after Sanji.

If anything, his attacks seemed even wilder than the last time he'd faced him. There was no style or grace to his movements, it was like fighting a wild animal. Still, his strength was real, and Sanji needed to take this fight seriously.

Not that he felt there was much chance of him losing, he just couldn't get too careless. Sanji had experience facing stronger opponents than Kiba, and thus was able to calmly assess the situation while fighting.

If he pressed his own attack, rather than defending as he was, he'd probably win the exchange. However, with Kiba's style as unpredictable as it was, there was a certain risk to that. The surest way to win would simply be to wait for Kiba to make a mistake and capitalize on it. Or better yet, to provoke him into making one.

Switching strategies, he reduced his blocking and focused on avoiding the attacks completely, frequently jumping away to make distance. He could already see his actions were beginning to frustrate his opponent.

"Are you going to fight or just run away?" he asked angrily.

"Oh, you were already fighting?" he asked, goading him on as best as he could. "I thought we were just warming up. You couldn't even keep up with that when you were fighting seriously?"

Kiba growled at him in reply and came at him even more aggressively than before. But his attacks were becoming more erratic, so it didn't take long before he got the opening he wanted. Kiba had put everything he had into an attempt at a running tackle. When Sanji dodged around it, Kiba simply had too much momentum to turn around quickly.

That left Sanji with a clear line to his exposed back, an opportunity he wasted no time in acting upon. He was inches away from landing what would be a devastating kick to his back when a blur out of the corner of his eye caught his attention.

His years of training immediately kicked in, allowing him to abandon the attack and leap to safety moments before the large, white object would have collided with him. The rapidly spinning blur came to a stop about a dozen feet away and resolved itself into the dog that had been with the two marines.

Inwardly, he chewed himself out for dismissing the canine as a serious threat. He knew it had beaten Usopp, but that really didn't say much of anything. He'd assumed it would be little more than a distraction. But by the size and speed of that attack, it was clear he would much rather take one of Kiba's best blows than being on the receiving side of that thing.

"Two on one, huh?" he asked, hoping he could shame him into fighting alone. "That's _real _brave of you."

"Akamaru is my partner," Kiba answered more calmly than he'd have liked. "My fight is his fight."

It seemed that plan didn't work. Sanji would just have to go on the offensive after all. He'd take out Kiba quickly and then deal with the dog at his leisure. So Sanji leaped into sudden attack that succeeded in catching Kiba off guard, and he soon had him against the ropes. But he was unable to capitalize on that before he was again forced to dodge the rapidly spinning Akamaru.

It was a series of events that quickly became a pattern, much to Sanji's frustration. Every time he got a bit of an advantage in his fight, Akamaru would be there to force them apart. Well then, he would just have to break the pattern himself.

Then next time he forced an opening in Kiba's guard, he was already preparing himself for to attack he knew would be coming. Spotting the incoming canine, he twisted around to send a roundhouse kick with the intent of catching the spinning form on the side before it could hit him.

He was caught off balance, however, when his leg swept through empty air above the now rapidly descending Akamaru. The sudden midair course change left him unable to defend himself from the new line of attack, which led the dog to collide with the inside of is left leg.

The force of impact flipped him up and over his attacker. Sanji was able to turn his spin into a somewhat awkward cartwheel, but when he returned to his feet, he was greeted with a sharp pain in his left knee.

Testing it, he concluded he'd definitely pulled something, but it wasn't bad enough to prevent him from using the leg. As such, it wouldn't prove that bad of a handicap. Unfortunately, considering how things were already going, he couldn't afford any handicap at all. He just hoped Franky was doing better than he was.

* * *

This fight wasn't going well for Franky. The girl was simply way to quick, constantly spinning around him and attacking with her sword like an overly annoying gnat. She kept moving so much he hadn't even had a chance to use any of his super abilities.

The worst part of it, though, was that stupid sword of hers. His solid metal arms were now covered in small nicks and scratches from where he'd blocked her strikes. What exactly was that thing made from? It was all he could do to protect his back.

Thankfully she hadn't discovered that weakness yet, so she wasn't focusing on it, but he did **not** want to find out what that sword would do to his fleshy backside. She seemed to have no hesitation about the possibility of killing him either. He was going to have to think of something, quickly.

So he was surprised to see the young woman come to a stop in front of him. He knew he should take advantage of the opportunity, but he hesitated when he saw she was about to speak.

"Where's Zoro?" she asked him. "More than anyone else in your crew, I must see that he's punished."

It wasn't Franky, however, who answered. That privilege was reserved for their newly arrived reinforcements.

"I don't know where Zoro is," Brook declared, "but if you want to cross swords with someone, I'd be more than happy to oblige."

The woman quickly turned to where Brook and Chopper now stood, holding her sword in front of her defensively. She seemed to tense up the instant she saw them.

"A walking skeleton?" she asked. "What sort of dark dealings have you made to get help from the undead?"

"Nothing darker than a devil fruit, I assure you," Brook answered her. "Although given the name, I suppose that could be considered quite dark indeed."

"Whatever you are, if you're helping them, I won't hesitate to capture you," she promised him.

"If you're done with the chitchat can someone please get over here and help me?" Sanji yelled out from where he was fighting a short distance away.

"Ah coming!" Chopper shouted back, running toward the cook as fast as his little legs would carry him.

"Now then," Franky said cheerfully, "let's see how well you do now that the numbers are in our favor."

* * *

Naruto weighed the risks of trying to talk his way out of this mess or relying on force. It really wasn't much of a contest, however. He'd didn't trust the pirates in the least and so didn't want waste their chance at a surprise attack.

So he focused on creating four clones in a protective ring around Nojiko and himself while summoning his fifth clone behind Bonney to try to catch her flatfooted. Although the popping into existence of his clones turned out to be much less comforting than he'd anticipated. This was due to the fact that there were only three of them rather than the five he'd intended to summon.

Worse still, one of the missing clones was the one he'd tried to summon behind Bonney. He made a second attempt to summon the last two, but despite feeling the strain, nothing happened. It seemed his younger body was incapable of creating as many clones simultaneously. In addition, there was nothing much he could contribute to the fight with his own body. This would be up to his clones.

* * *

As soon as he'd popped into existence Naruto took up a defensive stance around his now childish real body. He quickly realized, however, that there wasn't a clone sneaking up on Bonney from behind, and he was the closest of the three that had been summoned to the pirate captain.

Not sure what was going on, he still decided to try to salvage the plan as best as possible and sprinted toward Bonney himself. Seeing him coming, she smiled and held out a hand in front of her, from which sprung what looked like a blueish-white ball of energy.

He quickly dug his heels into the ground, trying to dodge the attack. That wouldn't normally have been an issue, seeing as it really wasn't moving that fast. However, she had waited until he was only a couple of yards away, and as fast as he was running toward her, he wasn't able to get out of the way in time.

Bracing himself for its effects, he noticed that after a few seconds, nothing had yet happened. Judging by the look of surprise on Bonney's face, that was a pretty good sign.

"It seems your power doesn't effect my clones," he boasted.

"That doesn't matter," she replied. "You can't hope to take on my men and I with just these clones of yours."

"You might be surprised," he told her, then immediately resumed his attack.

She blocked his first blow with crossed forearms but was driven back by the force of his punch, nearly losing her balance. He was prevented from following up on his attack, however, when a large man with a pair of handlebar mustaches came to her defense.

But he ducked under the meaty arm as it swung toward him, and sent a quick uppercut into the man's jaw, knocking his light's out instantly as crumpled to the ground. As his body moved out of the way, it allowed him to see Bonney again, who had used the man's mass to block his view of her as she sent a flying kick his way.

He defended by holding up his right arm to block and activating his Tekkai. Unable to pierce his defenses, she was forced to use his arm as a platform to jump back in the direction she'd come from. Upon landing, she got into a defensive stance, eying him warily.

It had only been two brief exchanges, but it was already clear she was no match for him. Compared to types of battles he was becoming used to, such as Lee, Blackbeard, Orochimaru, Kabuto, and Luffy, she simply couldn't compare. It seemed she was the type who depended heavily on their power. Which gave Naruto a natural advantage seeing as his clones were immune to hers.

Taking a look around, he saw that the other clones must have been making quick work of her crew, judging by how many fallen bodies littered the road.

"Don't think you've won yet!" Bonney yelled angrily as she charged straight at him.

Naruto decided it was time to end this, running to meet her and sending a fist right toward her oncoming face with enough force to take her down. So he was stunned when his attack was dodged as she actually shrunk beneath his fist. Turning around, he was horrified to see the childish form grow back to its normal proportions as it ran straight toward his real body.

"I just need to take out this problem as the source and it's all over," she gloated as she ran.

Naruto was already giving pursuit, but knew he wouldn't be able to catch her in time. Nor was the only other clone he could see close enough to do anything, being instead occupied with finishing off the last of Bonney's crew members.

"Stop her!" Naruto called out, hoping Nojiko could do something.

"Stop her from what?" Nojiko asked in a panic, looking all around. "I can't see what's going on."

She didn't know he could survive his main body being killed, but that wouldn't do him much good if he were unconscious for days like last time. Nor was he entirely certain it would work on a second occasion, especially with Bonney's power interacting with his body at the time of death. He would find out soon enough, however, as she had just reached his body. Hoisting it in the air, she grabbed the small chin in her hand, twisting hard.

"Goodbye," she said smugly.

Her smile quickly turned to shock, however, when the body disappeared in a puff of smoke. Naruto was nearly as surprised as she was, but being more familiar with his own powers he kept his composure better. So continued forward, uninterrupted and caught her in the side of the head with a kick, following through and slamming her down into the ground.

Her body didn't move from where it landed. He watched it cautiously for a few seconds, but when he noticed that Nojiko was beginning to look younger again, he let himself relax a bit. He saw his real body, already looking to be in its teens, jumping down from a nearby roof.

He should have known what was going on when he only saw one of the two clones still fighting. At some point he must have dismissed one of his clones and summoned a replica of his younger self on the roof. Then he switched places with it for safety. He may be the first person to ever nearly give himself a heart attack when he was fooled by his own trick.

* * *

"Get her in the seastone handcuffs," the real Naruto ordered Nojiko, now that they were both back to their correct ages.

"Right," Nojiko agreed, quickly doing as he said.

"They don't really need to be that tight," Naruto noted as he watched her apply them.

"I'll make them as tight as I want," she insisted stubbornly. "She deserves worse after what she did to me."

"It wasn't that bad," Naruto responded. "Especially as we both got back to normal so quickly."

"You don't understand," she snapped. "You only got turned into a kid, she made me so … old. Do you know how worried I was that I would never change back?"

Naruto wasn't sure he understood why that would be so different, but chocked it up to just another female oddity. He'd heard women were sensitive about their ages, after all. Anyway, he was still worried about Kiba and the others, but looking around at all the fallen bodies he decided he'd just have to trust in them for now.

He'd have enough trouble carrying all these pirates by himself. Not to mention the fact that it would be impossible to remain inconspicuous when dragging along so many unconscious bodies. And if any additional trouble found them, he wouldn't want to be handicapped by missing clones. Anyway, the four of them should be able to take care of themselves at least until he had his prisoners safely back to base.

* * *

As loathe as she was to admit it, Tashigi knew she had little chance of taking both these opponents at once. That blue haired pervert that was parading around half naked seemed all but impervious to her attacks. But at least he hadn't been a real threat to her.

It became a completely different matter when faced with that skeleton as well. He was proving to be highly skilled with the sword. Not as good as Zoro, of course, but skilled nonetheless. No, she'd managed to avoid injury so far, but that was almost as much luck as skill.

Her best hope was to stall until Kiba and Akamaru could finish their fights. Although she was deliberately trying to avoid considering the fact that they might not win. If they lost, it really would be over for her.

* * *

Sanji was relieved to see Chopper make his way over to them. He had been starting to feel a bit worried about the how his fight would turn out. Now, however, things were beginning to look up.

"Akamaru, can you take whatever that thing there is?" Kiba asked the dog. "I want to finish up with our friend here."

"That's rude!" Chopper complained. "I'm not a thing, I'm Chopper, a reindeer."

"I don't care what you are," he replied. "You'll be dog food soon enough."

Sanji was glad they were of one mind as far as fight pairings. Without Akamaru interfering, things would be very different.

"Let's see how you do in a fair fight," Sanji told him, jumping back into the fray.

Kiba, however, blocked his first kick and soon got Sanji back on the defensive. Part of that was that Sanji was favoring his injured knee more than was really necessary. It wasn't too bad at the moment, but he was worried that pushing his luck would only make it worse. Although he may not be given any choice but to risk it. Kiba seemed to instinctively take advantage of his injury, despite the wildness of his attacks. It reminded him of a predator that smelled blood.

"Help me! He says he really is going to eat me!" Chopper screamed out as he ran from Akamaru, dodging his spinning attacks.

The sudden outburst caused both Sanji and Kiba to pause in their fighting.

"Doesn't look like your friend is going to be much help," Kiba taunted. "Even if, by some miracle, you manage to hold your own against me, Akamaru should finish up shortly and rejoin the party."

"Chopper, stop running and fight!" he ordered, ignoring Kiba's barb. "You're a member of this crew, I know you can do it."

"Right," Chopper answered pulling himself together and switching to his larger hybrid form.

Steeling himself for the next attack, Chopper attempted to punch the incoming canine drill away from him before it could hit. Just like with Sanji, however, the attack dropped under the assault. At least having attacked with a punch, rather than a kick, Chopper was in a better position to jump away. In doing so he managed to avoid a leg injury of his own. Instead, Akamaru simply skimmed across the ground, kicking up dust as he passed underneath Chopper.

"It's useless to try that," Kiba declared, simultaneous initiating a series vicious series of punches that forced Sanji back as he did his best to block them. "We had an opponent use that trick a while back. But we've trained hard ever since to make sure he can dodge any attempt to catch him like that. There's nothing that reindeer can do."

"Don't underestimate Chopper," Sanji fired back, physically as well as verbally as his counterattack hit Kiba's guard hard enough to make him skid back a couple of feet.

"Rumble Ball," he heard Chopper shout followed quickly by the call of, "Brain Point."

Chopper shrunk back down to his smaller form, letting Akamaru's most recent attack pass above him.

"That's it, I've got it," Chopper declared boldly. "Jumping Point!"

When Akamaru spun at him again, Chopper used the powerful legs of his current form to jump far to the side, creating a great deal of distance.

"Horn Point!" he called out switching to a much more reindeer like quadruped form.

The he sunk his massive horns into the ground, pulling up a huge clod of dirt and grass.

"He's a fool if he thinks that will stop him," Kiba declared as he attacked.

Thankfully it seemed only halfhearted as Kiba looked to be as distracted by the other fight as Sanji was at the moment. As Akamaru spun in for another pass, Chopper twisted his head and tossed the mound of soil between his horns straight at him. Akamaru didn't even attempt to dodge, letting it hit him straight on. He plowed through it with the attack doing little more than creating a cloud of dust.

"See?" Kiba asked smugly on witnessing the result.

Chopper, however, was already running the moment the attack had left his horns.

"Arm Point!" he called out as he reached the edge of the cloud of dust.

Standing once again on two feet, he pulled back his now massively muscled arms and began to swing them forward just as Akamaru emerged from the dust cloud right in front of him.

"Kokutei Diamond!" he yelled, hitting the spinning dog in the side with both of his hooves at once.

The force of the attack caused Akamaru to veer sharply to the side. He soon smashed into the ground, careening around as his spinning slowed enough to make out the actual canine form. He continued rolling along burning off speed before finally coming to a halt, lying on his side.

"Akamaru!" Kiba cried out furiously. "I swear you'll wish you hadn't done that!"

After making his vow, Kiba pulled a dagger out from him belt holding in menacingly in front of him. It looked like this fight was about to get serious again.

* * *

Kiba was fuming. He should have been taking his fight more seriously, rather than half watching Akamaru's. Now, however, he'd slice his opponent up quickly and then do the same to that reindeer that had just knocked his partner out.

"I had no desire to seriously injure you before," Kiba told him. "Now, having you bleed out in front of me doesn't sound to bad."

He wasted no further time on conversation, wanting to finish this before Chopper could come to Sanji's aid. Sending slice after slice after his opponent, he was frustrated to see him dodging every attack. Sanji did have a look of surprise on his face, however. He probably wasn't expecting Kiba to come at him with such deadly force.

But his look quickly changed into an irritating smirk. Determined to wipe it off his face, he leaped forward and sent a horizontal slash right at that smile of his. It hit nothing, however, as Sanji ducked underneath, rolling forward and crouching down onto his hands. He then used his arms to spring upwards, straightening his body into a handstand and sending both his feet crashing into Kiba's outstretched arms.

The force of the double kick sent the dagger flying out of his hand and up into the air. It also knocked him over onto his back. Quickly getting to his feet and jumping back he felt an intense pain in his shoulder when he tried to move his right arm. He realized grimly that the attack had dislocated his shoulder as well as disarming him.

Rather than pressing his attack, however, Sanji simply stood in his spot, the reason becoming clear a moment later when he caught the dagger as it descended back to the ground. He then proceeded in a very impressive display of spinning the weapon around his hands that wouldn't have been out of place in a street performance.

"You never should have pulled your weapon out," Sanji told him. "It's clear you don't know how to use it properly. If you're going to use a weapon, it should be like an extension of your body. Your childishly inept swings made it far easier for me than when you were unarmed. Now you're injured and it's too late for you to do anything."

Sanji then tossed the dagger behind him, abandoning it. A fact that Kiba took as an extra insult.

"You seem pretty skilled with it yourself, yet you still tossed it away," Kiba pointed out. "I may be injured, but if you don't take me seriously you may end up regretting it."

"It's not that I don't take you seriously," Sanji answered. "It's just that I'm a cook. My hands are my life, and I won't risk them in a fight."

Well then, Kiba would just have to make him learn the folly of considering outside factors more important than winning a fight. Still having three working limbs, he charged at Sanji again, determined to put everything into one final assault. Sanji was still injured himself after all, if much less seriously than Kiba.

As he neared Sanji, he saw the man preparing his own attack, a kick coming on the side of Kiba's still working left arm. It was his opportunity, however. He wouldn't make any effort to dodge or block the kick, instead putting everything into his own counterpunch. He'd just have to make sure he gave worse than he got.

His eyes widened however when the leg being used in the attack pulled back, making it clear to Kiba this had just been a feint. Instead, Sanji cartwheeled into another handstand and began spinning his body, sending a kick at Kiba from his right side.

Kiba did his best to will his right arm to move, but it refused to comply. Unable to do anything in defense, Kiba was caught by a foot in the back of the neck that hit him like a sledgehammer. He concentrated all his effort into his struggle against the encroaching blackness, but in the end he lost that fight as well.

* * *

"You'd better go help them finish off the last one," Sanji told Chopper, while taking out a cigarette and lighting it up. "I'm sure you guys can handle her. Just don't hurt her anymore than necessary."

"Right," Chopper agreed, hurrying over to where the last fight was still going on.

As he was casually smoking, he heard a buzzing sound behind him. Turning, he saw a large swarm of insects rapidly approaching him. He tried to move out of their path, but they adjusted their course.

"Annoying bugs," he muttered, preparing himself to fend off the little bloodsuckers.

They proved to be far more than a simple inconvenience, however, as his body started going numb wherever they swarmed over him. He managed to give a startled cry before he fell to the ground, his legs unable to support him any longer. As the swarm moved away from him, he found himself still conscious, but unable to move in the least.

Although the largest surprise was when the swarm began to coalesce into the form of a man. One he'd seen briefly in Water 7 when the same group of marines that was attacking now made their appearance. He saw Franky charging toward them and tried to call out a warning, but couldn't even manage to make a sound.

Franky attempted to punch the man away from him, but had the body merely turn back into bugs and start to swarm around his arm. Nevertheless, he picked up Sanji with his other arm and tossed him over to where Chopper stood. Landing harshly Sanji wished his mouth would work so he could chew the man out for how carelessly he'd thrown him.

"See if you can help Sanji, Chopper," Franky yelled out. "I'll take care of bug boy here."

* * *

Shino wasn't going to complain about this fool making it so easy for him to paralyze a second one of them. His efforts were only aided by how little clothing the over seven foot tall man wore. Although, as he swarmed all around the body, he got the odd sense that something was wrong.

Even on guard as he was due to that sensation, however, he was ill prepared to deal with the stream of fire that shot from the man's mouth. Fire that he was aiming at his own arms and legs in an effort to destroy the insects swarming him. As they died by the hundreds, Shino found himself wracked with pain as the shock began to force him back into his human form.

When he had completely transformed he ignored the exhaustion now permeating his body and forced himself to get some distance. To his dismay, the blue haired man seemed completely unphased by his venom, moving around with ease. Nor did his skin seem damaged in the least where it had been hit with his own fire.

"Just what are you?" Shino asked him, hoping to get some much needed info on his opponent.

"I'm a cyborg," he answered obligingly, banging his fist against his chest to create a clank of metal on metal. "Your bugs are less than useless against my body."

A metal body? That was even worse than he'd feared. Even in top condition he didn't know if there was anything he could do against that. And he was far from in top condition. He was doing his best to hide it, but that attack of his had left him almost completely drained. He didn't think he could even transform again in his state. So his only option was hand to hand combat against a man who was made of solid steel.

"Let me show you what else I can do," he told Shino, lifting his right arm and pointing it at him.

Not willing to make it any easier on the man than necessary, Shino was already in motion, running in a large circle around him. Although his weary body prevented him from moving as quickly as he'd like, and he wasn't sure there was much he could do to prevent whatever his adversary was planning.

So he was surprised not so much by the fact that his right fist actually shot out from his arm in Shino's direction, but that it missed him by a wide margin. In fact it nearly hit the skeleton that was fighting with Tashigi.

"Watch where you're shooting that thing!" the skeletal swordsman complained.

"Sorry," his companion replied as he reeled his fist back in via the chain that connected it to his arm. "I'm feeling a little off right now or something."

Actually, Shino noticed now that he was moving a little oddly after all, his body's motion a bit stiff and awkward. But he'd seen nothing of the sort from him prior to his attempts to paralyze the man. And if his attack had an effect, that meant his body must not be completely made of metal after all.

It was clear that his arms and legs were moving normally, and he remembered the sound of metal on metal when he'd banged his fist against his chest. That limited the potential areas where he might be vulnerable.

"I believe he has a weak point somewhere on his back or stomach," Shino called out to Tashigi. "It may be up to you to take advantage of that."

He would buy her what time he could, but he doubted it would be much.

* * *

Tashigi was grateful for Shino's insight into the cyborg. He had been a real pain to fight, but if he really did have a weak point then she was confident she could beat him. Now, she would try to return the favor by finishing off the skeleton quickly. That shouldn't be too difficult, as once she was fighting him alone, it was clear she had the upper hand.

"Well then, this has been fun, but with my friend's weakness discovered it really would be best if I finish this," her opponent declared.

Then oddly enough, he began humming as he walked slowly toward her. Unsure what to expect, she took a defensive stance and eyed him warily. It was fortunate that she had, as once he'd gotten within range, he struck with his fastest attack yet. Tashigi was barely able to parry it in time.

After that, his sword arm began moving even faster, become little more than a blur even to Tashigi's trained eyes. Finally it came to a stop and he continued walking along, humming as he went.

"You should be grateful I don't truly wish to harm you," he told her. "Consider what I just did to your clothes a warning. Now, if you'd be so kind as to show me your panties."

He then went to sheathe his sword, only to finally realize he was no longer holding it, Tashigi having knocked it out of his hand when she parried the first strike. As he stood there trying to figure out what had just happened, his sword landed a few feet out in the nearby ocean with a loud splash.

"My sword!" he cried out. "And I can't swim!"

"Can you still help out?" his metallic companion asked.

"Engage them in fisticuffs you mean?" he queried. "I fear I wouldn't be much help in that regard."

"Hey, what's going on here?" a voice called out that immediately drew Tashigi's full attention. "Why did you let them steal our ship?"

"What are you talking about, you moron?" Sanji yelled out to where Zoro now stood, able to at least talk now but not looking capable of any movement. "We haven't let them steal our ship."

"Then what's it doing here in grove 41?" Zoro asked petulantly. "It's supposed to be in Grove 1. And what are you doing just lying there in a fight."

"It was never in Grove 1!" Sanji yelled back. "And I'm lying here because I can't move. Just remember not to let any bugs touch you in this fight or you'll end up like me."

Finally seeing her number one target, Tashigi couldn't restrain herself anymore, running straight toward him. In the back of her mind she noted that Shino was yelling for her to stop, but she ignored him completely. Instead, she sent an attack that would have decapitated the pirate if he hadn't pulled out one of his swords to block.

She continued to press her assault, forcing him to retreat backwards as he blocked repeatedly with his sword. He tired of that quickly however, and pulled out a second blade, causing his defense to immediately become much more solid. Tashigi was determined to force him to use all three of his swords, so she pressed harder, using every ounce of training she had to force him back on the defensive again.

"You have a new sword," he noted calmly enough to irritate Tashigi further.

"You do as well," she responded. "Is that Shuusui?"

"Yeah, it is," he answered. "I had to replace Yubashiri because it rusted to pieces."

"You ... you let Yubashiri rust?" she sputtered out in absolute horror. "You pirates really are monsters."

"I didn't just let it rust," he insisted angrily. "And just so you know, it was a marine who destroyed it with a devil fruit power."

Tashigi wasn't about to let him get to her with his lies, instead resuming her previous assault. She could see that Zoro was being pushed pretty hard now and had to smile at that.

"Don't think this will be as easy as last time," she told him. "I'm much stronger than I was then."

In response he blocked her latest assault and jumped back to create some distance. It looked like she was finally going to convince him he needed to take her seriously and use all of his blades.

"You certainly are much stronger," he admitted. "But I've grown a lot myself, and you're still no match for me."

He then got into an odd stance holding both his swords horizontally above his shoulders, but Tashigi didn't wait for him to act. If he still wasn't going to go all out, she would keep pressing him until he did. As she neared him, he swung his swords in a rapid circular swing.

Tashigi was confused, as she wasn't yet in range of his attack. So she was completely caught off guard when she was hit in the torso with two bolts of what she could only assume was compressed air. The blast was powerful enough to hurl her backward, and worse than that, she'd been so stunned that she'd lost her grip on Kusanagi.

When she landed and had a chance to recover, she saw Zoro standing over her fallen sword. Tashigi ground her teeth in fury, but couldn't see anything she could do to get out of this situation. Still, she had to do something. Even if she couldn't rescue _his_ swords, she was _not_ going to let Zoro get Kusanagi as well.

* * *

It was clear to Shino that actually winning this fight was now all but out of the question. It was time to turn his efforts into finding a way to get everyone out of there safely. He just might be able to accomplish that, but it depended on the pirates keeping their word and actually caring about what happened to their teammates. Not a wager that exactly inspired confidence, but he saw little alternative.

It was a great strain, but he actually succeeded in forcing his body to transform again. Then, he directed his swarm of bugs to press down low to the ground.

"Look out," the cyborg called out. "He's hiding in the grass somewhere and I can't see him."

Shino had to hurry, as the man had already begun torching the ground with that fire breath of his. Thankfully, the attacks didn't hit him, and he reached the fallen man that was his target. As Shino rose from the ground, the small creature that was standing over the paralyzed pirate jumped back defensively.

He had little to worry about in that regard, however, as Shino had pushed himself to his limit just holding this form as long as he had, and was already transforming back. As soon as he was solid enough, he pulled out a small blade he kept hidden up his sleeve and held it against the neck of the blond man.

"Nobody move!" he ordered. "If you don't listen I'll slit his throat."

It was a good start to see that they actually listened. Now to see just how obedient they'd be.

"I'll release your friend if you let us all go unharmed," he informed them.

"Why would we want to stop you in the first place?" his captive asked. "You're the ones who attacked us. We'd be thrilled if you all just left us alone."

Shino was actually surprised he was speaking again so soon. Whatever his companion had been doing to treat him, it must have been effective.

"If your friends agree with you they can all go and stand over by their ship," Shino told him loud enough for everyone to hear.

"And leave my sword," Tashigi added, directing her words at Zoro.

"You didn't seem to care much about my sword," he heard the skeleton mutter as he moved away from the edge of the water where he was trying to fish said weapon out with a long stick.

All of them complied, moving over the ship and awaiting further instruction. Tashigi barely waited for Zoro to move away from Kusanagi before dashing over and retrieving it.

"Tashigi, take Kiba and Akamaru over to the edge of the forest," he directed her.

This task would likely prove even easier than he'd anticipated, as he could now see that Akamaru was already rousing. Kiba, however, was still little more than dead weight for her, but she didn't have much trouble dragging him over to where he'd pointed, while Akamaru followed alongside worriedly.

"We did what you said, now release me," his captive ordered.

"Sanji isn't worth this trouble if you ask me," Zoro opined.

"I heard that!" Sanji yelled out.

"That's because I meant you to," Zoro fired back.

Shino however, had gotten what he wanted, so he followed through on his part of the bargain, removing the blade and slowly walking away. His speed was not due to any particular confidence they wouldn't go back on their word now that Sanji was free, but because it was about all his worn out body could muster.

Still, he did his best to hide his state as he walked to where Tashigi waited. Showing how weak he was would only increase the likelihood they would attack. Somehow he managed to keep up his facade until he reached his companions and was able to move behind a tree to hide himself from sight. As soon as he had, he more or less let his legs give way beneath him, dropping harshly to a sitting position with his back against the tree.

"Are you alright?" Tashigi asked worriedly.

"I'll be fine," he assured her. "But Kiba may not be the only one you need to help back to the ship."

* * *

Naruto was glad when the marine base came into view. It was a real pain carrying all these pirates along. Although he had no idea what he would have done without his clones to help. Nojiko had insisted on taking care of Bonney herself. Naruto had reluctantly agreed, but made sure he stayed close and kept alert for anything to happen.

But she still hadn't show any sign of consciousness. He really doubted she was faking either, considering Nojiko had decided to pull her along by her legs, leaving her head to drag along the ground. Also, it might be his imagination, but it looked to him like she was making a deliberate effort to drag her across as many rocks as possible.

Upon reaching the entrance to the base, he was met by a pair of guards whose eyes widened noticeably upon seeing their captives.

"Is that Jewelry Bonney?" one of them asked. "You've really captured a big shot, haven't you."

"Yeah, although it wasn't as easy as I'd have liked," Naruto admitted.

"I can imagine," the man's partner answered. "There's only seven of you left. How many men did you lose?"

"No, it was just the two of us to begin with," he corrected them. "It was mostly just that her devil fruit power had me worried for a bit. She really wasn't very strong aside from that."

"And I'm afraid I really didn't contribute anything at all," Nojiko added humbly.

"Two?" he asked in confusion. "But there are more than two … "

His words cut off when he got a good look at Naruto's clones, who had been largely obscured by the men the were carrying. He'd obviously taken note of how similarly they all looked.

"I'm a devil fruit user too," he explained. "Suffice it to say that a duel against me would only arguably be considered one versus one."

"Well, we'll take the captives from here," the first guard told him. "You'll need to go to that building over there next to the wooden training posts to process the paperwork for the prisoners."

The man quickly beckoned over a number of marines, who came and relieved them of their burdens. With no further need for his clones, Naruto quickly dismissed them. Then he and Nojiko entered the base and set course for the building they'd been directed to. As he walked off he was able to hear the two guards talking behind him.

"The girl said she didn't even help, so he basically took out Bonney and her crew by himself, right?" he asked.

"Yeah, he's another monster alright," his companion agreed. "It's hard to believe we had two of them come in so close together."

Two of them? Who else could they be referring to? Had Shino and the others beaten them back to the base? Anyway, he picked up his pace and hurried into the building, hoping to ask some questions when he filled in the paperwork.

When he entered he saw a man already standing at the unmanned desk, with his back to Naruto. It wasn't anyone from his crew, but that black head of hair looked familiar to him. He just couldn't seem to place it. He quickly realized who it was, however, when the young man turned to face him. It was Uchiha Sasuke, the bounty hunter from back when he'd first met Shino.

"Namikaze Naruto," Sasuke greeted him. "I didn't expect to meet you again here. From what I understand that whole kidnapping incident turned out to be pretty interesting for you after all."

"Yeah, maybe you should have stuck around," Naruto quipped, not having taken much a liking for the young bounty hunter when they'd last met.

"I doubt it would have been worth it," he replied. "The papers didn't even mention you specifically. They just referred to 'an elite group of marines aided by bounty hunters that kidnapped Orochimaru from his own base after causing confusion by turning another group of pirates against him.'"

"How do you know he was involved if it wasn't mentioned in the paper?" Nojiko asked him.

"It wasn't too hard to find out if you did a little digging," he answered. "But it's still not very clear how much you actually had to do with defeating him. So aiding you likely wouldn't have done much to help me make a name for myself.

"There are more important things than making a name for yourself," Naruto argued.

"I thought you at least would understand," Sasuke told him.

"Understand what?" Naruto asked.

"What it's like to live under the shadow of a more famous relative," he answered. "But you are right, there are more important things than that. The most important thing for me is getting strong enough to face my brother again."

That was certainly interesting information. It looks like their really was something to his earlier guess about bad blood between brothers.

"Here's your reward for capturing Capone Bege," a man announced, walking up to the counter from a back room, carrying a suitcase. "All 138 million beli are right here."

"Well, I can't afford to sit around all day chatting," Sasuke declared. "There are plenty of big bounties left on Sabaody."

With that he took the suitcase and walked out the door.

"You didn't seem to like him much," Nojiko pointed out.

"It's not that I really have anything against him," Naruto explained. "Something about his attitude just bugs me a bit. Anyway, at least there was one good thing about our meeting."

"What's that?" Nojiko asked.

"My bounty beats his by two million beli," he replied cheerfully.

The paperwork was pretty quick, and Naruto was soon walking out with a suitcase of his own, if smaller, seeing as marines don't get the full bounty.

"Aren't you worried about the rest of the crew?" Nojiko asked him. "We should go check on them."

"You're right," he told her. "I'll send a couple of clones after them right away."

"We should go ourselves," she insisted. "I don't want to just stand around here when they could be in trouble."

Naruto had to think fast. He still didn't want to admit to Nojiko just whose ship they were attempting to steal. He couldn't think of a way out of this yet, but maybe he could stall her.

"We're right by the ship, and they may already be back," he told her. "We should check quickly before we leave."

"Okay, but let's hurry," she told him.

It was a short jog back to ship. They saw no sign of anyone on the deck, but as soon as they'd boarded the den den mushi rang. Heading into the dining room, he picked up the receiver.

"This is Shino," the voice came from the other end.

"Nice timing on the call, we just got back," Naruto informed him.

"Yes, I was aware of that," Shino stated simply.

"Okay, that's it," Nojiko interjected. "How do you do things like that?"

"I keep one of the bugs from my transformed state on each of you," he answered. "As long as I stay close enough I can sense where it is."

"You keep a bug on me?" Nojiko screeched. "Get it off of me this instant!"

She began to dance around brushing at herself trying to find the offending insect.

"I have already removed it," Shino told her calmly. "Since you find the idea so revolting, I will refrain from tracking you in the future."

"You'd better," Nojiko said threateningly.

She did, however, calm down at his words. For his part, Naruto wasn't sure Shino was really the type to give up a tactical advantage like that so easily. He struck Naruto more as the type to claim he had removed the bug simply to placate her. Still, he wasn't dumb enough to voice his thoughts on the matter. Instead he decided to return to more important matters.

"How did things go?" he asked.

"Our mission was a failure, but all of us are fine," Shino answered.

"Fine!" he heard Kiba yell. "You practically ripped my arm off putting my shoulder back in its socket. Anyway, it was only a failure because we were outnumbered. You should join us and we can get our revenge. Just make sure you give that stupid blond cook a thorough beating for me."

"Blond cook?" Nojiko asked dangerously. "You wouldn't happen to mean Sanji would you?"

Naruto wished he could reach through the receiver and throttle Kiba right about now.

"That's why you didn't want to take me to check on them," she reasoned out loud. "You were keeping this a secret from me."

"It was too late for me to stop Kiba," Naruto said defensively. "I just didn't want to worry you about something I couldn't control."

Nojiko looked skeptical but didn't press him further. Instead, she turned her fury back to Kiba.

"And what possessed you to try this in the first place?" she asked him. "You didn't hurt anyone did you?"

"Your sister isn't even with them," Kiba told her. "So I don't see what you're getting so worked up about. Most of her crew is at their ship. We can capture them, steal the ship, and then she'd all but have to quit being a pirate. That's a win for everyone, right?"

"We are not going to steal their ship, nor are we capturing any of them," Nojiko ordered. "Do you hear that too, Tashigi?"

"Tashigi isn't with us at the moment," Shino told them. "I sent her to get some first aid supplies."

Naruto silently thanked him for that, not wanting another fight between the two women over this issue right now.

"Well you make sure she hears that," Nojiko insisted stubbornly.

"She had a message for you as well," Shino answered. "She wanted me to inform you that just because I departed from your group doesn't mean you can try anything."

"What king of a message is that?" Nojiko asked in confusion.

"Anyway, I would advise against attacking them again as well," Shino declared. "Our injuries were much more severe than their own. Fighting them in this state would be foolish. With your permission, we'll make our way back to the ship."

"You have it," Naruto told them. "We'll speak again when you get here."

He then hung up, glad to have that conversation over with. Only moments after he had, the den den mush rung again. That better not be Kiba calling back to complain.

"Hello," he said after picking it up.

"Ah, Naruto," Kakashi said through the animals' connection. "I'm glad you're okay. What with that huge commotion and all."

"Excuse me?" Naruto asked. "What commotion are you referring to?"

"You haven't heard?" he queried. "Well, it seems that the Straw Hat Pirates attacked several of the tenryuubito and took them hostage."

"Why would they do that?" Nojiko cut in suddenly.

"Ah, Nojiko, good to hear your voice," Kakashi answered. "Anyway, I don't know that it really matters why they did it. I doubt we'll have to worry about the Straw Hat Pirates ever again."

"What do you mean?" she pressed him.

"Admiral Kizaru is on his way to deal with the situation personally," Kakashi informed them. "And he's the type who rarely takes prisoners. His solutions tend to be more permanent in nature. Well, I recommend you just sit tight and let this blow over. Kizaru will take care of everything."

The line went dead on him and he could see the color already draining from Nojiko's face.

"He's going to kill Nami!" she said in a panic. "Kakashi said so and everyone was saying how strong the admirals are and they won't stand a chance and he's going to kill Nami!"

"Calm down," Naruto told her. "We can still help her."

"What do you mean?" Nojiko asked hopefully.

"I don't think even Kizaru would kill a pirate who was already a captive," Naruto told her.

"So you want to send her to prison to save her from being killed?" Nojiko asked dubiously.

"It is the better option, isn't it?" Naruto argued. "Anyway, there's always the chance they would get to their ship and escape if we try to capture them. Especially if they know Admiral Kizaru is after them."

"That's it!" Nojiko said excitedly. "We warn them to run away."

Naruto did his best not to openly disagree. He had suggested the last part to help cheer Nojiko up, but he didn't actually want the Straw Hat Pirates to escape.

"I'm heading to their ship," she announced. "You said it was in Grove 41, right?"

"Yeah, I'll come with you," Naruto told her.

"No," she quickly replied. "They may not be at the ship, so I want you to use your clones to spread out and search for them."

"You shouldn't go alone," Naruto insisted. "There are still too many dangerous pirates around."

"Please," she practically begged him. "This is very important to me; I certainly consider it worth the risk. Just promise me you'll do your best to find them and let them know about Kizaru."

Naruto sighed. He could tell she wasn't going to budge on this, and given that her sister's life was at stake he really could understand. So he quickly summoned his five clones around him.

"Alright," he agreed. "Let's get going."

* * *

"So we'll meet up back here in three days," Nami told the assembled crew. "Everyone needs to stay hidden until then."

They were currently gathered outside Shakky's Bar, having just received the vivre cards from Rayleigh. Nami was worried about the current situation, considering that an admiral was going to be sent to the archipelago. However, it was a large place, so it shouldn't be too hard to stay hidden if they were careful. Although with this crew, it was the being careful part that worried her.

"Well, I never got to finish the repairs on the ship with all the excitement we had," Franky announced. "I'm going to go take care of that so it'll be ready to go when the coating is finished."

"I'll go with him to help," Usopp added.

"Sanji, have you recovered completely yet?" Chopper asked the cook.

"I'm still a bit stiff, and it's like I have pins and needles all over my body," he answered.

"Then I'd like to take you into town to buy some medical supplies," Chopper told him. "If they have the right herbs, I can help purge your body of the poison to make sure there are no lasting effects."

"That suits me just fine," Sanji replied. "I'll be more than happy to get this stuff out of me for good. I'm never going to look at a bug the same way again."

While they were talking, Nami caught sight of Zoro already walking off on his own.

"Where do you think you're going?" she demanded of him.

"Just taking a walk," he told her. "I have three days before I need to be back."

"Remember that we're trying to stay hidden," she instructed him.

"Don't worry," he replied dismissively. "If I run into any admirals I'll just slice them up."

"No!" she yelled angrily at him. "You're hiding, not fighting!"

But he continued to walk off, ignoring her.

"Brook, go after him and make sure he doesn't start any trouble," she ordered sharply.

"Right away," he agreed quickly.

At least one person here knew how to follow orders.

"Anyway, that just leaves the three of us," Nami said to Luffy and Robin, everyone else having departed. "Any ideas for what we should do?"

"I know, I know!" Luffy said, raising his hand excitedly. "Let's go back to the amusement park."

"We're trying to stay hidden!" Nami berated him.

"We'll hide in the crowd," Luffy argued.

"You do realize that our faces are all over wanted posters," Nami reminded him. "Any of the people who see us in the park could report our location to the marines. So we're not going."

"Then I want to get some meat," Luffy suggested.

"Fine," Nami agreed. "If you promise to stay inconspicuous, we'll make a quick stop for food."

"I promise!" he quickly agreed, before pausing briefly in confusion. "What's inconspicuous mean?"

Nami didn't know how she was going to get Luffy through these three days alive.

* * *

Nojiko finally came upon Nami's ship. It really was an impressive vessel. And was that a giant sunflower on the mast? But she didn't have time to admire it, so instead she hurried closer.

"Hello!" she called out loudly. "Is anyone there?"

A few moments later, Usopp's appeared at the edge of the ship, looking down at her.

"Nojiko!" he said cheerfully, before taken on a more suspicious look. "You guys aren't back for more are you?"

"I had nothing to with that," Nojiko told him. "I'm just here to warn you that Admiral Kizaru is on his way here. You need to sail away from here as soon as possible."

Apparently preferring not to continue to call down to her from the ship, Usopp hurried down the ramp to her location.

"We already know there's an admiral coming," he replied. "But we can't leave until the we have the ship coated."

"You could just sail away until this blows over and them come back for the coating," Nojiko pointed out.

"We're not going to delay our trip for anyone," Usopp insisted. "Besides we're not afraid of any admirals."

Nojiko was becoming a bit annoyed by his bravado. Deciding to make a point, she feigned a look of terror and pointed behind Usopp's back.

"It's Admiral Kizaru!" she cried out.

"Where?" Usopp screeched out fearfully, spinning around to check behind him.

"Yeah, you're not afraid of him in the least," she deadpanned.

"That wasn't fear," Usopp claimed. "I was just startled, that's all."

"Can you just tell me where Nami is?" Nojiko asked, hoping she'd have more luck talking sense into her sister.

"I don't know," Usopp answered. "We split up after we left Shakky's Bar and she didn't tell me where she was going."

Nojiko didn't press him for further information, being instead preoccupied with the large man who had somehow managed to sneak up behind Usopp without her noticing a thing. She had no idea how he'd done it, considering he had to be more than twenty feet tall.

"I'm not going to fall for that again," Usopp declared, apparently seeing the look of surprise on her face.

At a temporary loss for words she simply pointed behind him.

"Still not giving up huh?" Usopp added smugly, casually turning around. "See there's nothing back … Gah! Kuma!"

Usopp instantly jumped several feet backwards away from the man, before regaining a little bit of composure.

"I don't know what you want," he exclaimed, "but she has nothing to do with us, so leave her alone!"

Nojiko appreciated his attempt to protect her, but she wasn't about to stand back and let Usopp fight this man by herself. She had already pulled out her gun and was pointing it at his chect. But he simply ignored her and turned to face Usopp again.

"Where would you like to go on a trip?" he asked.

* * *

"Bring me more!" Luffy called out loudly, having finished his current helping of food.

Nami was already regretting bringing him to this restaurant.

"Stop shouting!" she admonished him. "We're trying to keep a low profile. Anyway, we've already been here too long. Someone is bound to report we're here to the marines sooner or later."

"But I'm still hungry," Luffy whined.

"You do know that Admiral Kizaru is after you, don't you?" a new voice inquired.

"Naruto!" Luffy greeted cheerfully upon seeing the blond marine. "Sit down and join us. The food here is really good."

"What are you doing here?" Nami asked him, grabbing her Clima Tact in case things got ugly.

"I'd prefer we take this outside, before things get ugly," Naruto told her upon seeing her action.

"Oh, you want a duel?" Luffy asked. "That's great! I've been wanting another chance to fight you."

"We can't afford a duel right now," Nami told him sharply. "We need to stay hidden for the next three days."

"Actually, it might not be such a bad idea," Robin interjected. "If we find a deserted area to fight it should draw less attention than remaining here. I believe Naruto here would agree to that as well to avoid risking any civilian casualties."

Robin did have a point. They might finally be able to convince Luffy to leave for a while. What other alternative did they have either? They'd already been discovered, so they needed to ensure Naruto didn't lead the admiral, Kizaru if he was being truthful, right to them.

"Right," Naruto agreed. "I passed a spot on the way in here that should be suitably isolated for both our needs."

"Okay, just let me finish this plate and I'll be right out," Luffy agreed, eying the large steak that had just been set in front of him.

"No, we're leaving now," Nami told him, slamming money for their meal on the table, then grabbing him by the ear and pulling him to the door.

As she dragged him, she saw him stretch out his arm back to the table, grab the steak, and stuff the whole thing into his mouth. Once they were all out the door, she turned to address Naruto.

"Lead on," she told him.

It really was quite annoying that they were still causing trouble for her. First the incident at the ship, and now this. She was going to have to have a talk with Nojiko later about reining in her companions. Still, as long as it was just Naruto, the three of them should be able to handle him without issue.

She did wonder briefly if he might be leading them into a trap. But they came to a stop before she came around to voicing her concerns. So it was a little late to worry about that now. The area they were in would serve nicely, being a large clearing surrounded by forest on all sides that would help keep them hidden.

"I don't suppose you want to surrender?" Naruto asked.

"When it's three of us against you?" Nami replied. "Shouldn't you be the one giving up?"

"No," Luffy said firmly. "This is a fight between Naruto and me. Don't interfere."

"There's no reason to risk that," Nami insisted. "We want to beat him as quickly as possible and get out of here."

"It's our captain's decision," Robin told her. "We should trust him."

There was a limit to trusting Luffy. And anything that relied on making an intelligent decision was well past that limit in Nami's opinion.

"Don't worry," Robin added more quietly so only Nami could hear. "I'll step in if things get too dangerous."

"Fine," Nami agreed. "Do whatever you want."

* * *

Naruto didn't know whether to fully trust them on the offer to fight one on one. Luffy seemed earnest enough in his desire, but that didn't mean the two women would listen to him. For now he'd take them at their word. He'd just have to stay on guard for any surprises.

Still, as much as he knew he was doing the right thing in capturing the pirates that had laid waste to Enies Lobby, he couldn't help but feel a little guilty. He shouldn't let Nojiko get to him like this. Still, Luffy was the person he needed to focus on. Maybe there was one thing he could do to assuage his guilt a little.

"Nami, you know that your sister really doesn't want to see you captured," he called out to the girl. "She'd probably be much happier if you escaped in the confusion while I was fighting your captain."

"I'm not leaving Luffy behind," Nami fired back angrily. "And if you're so concerned with what my sister thinks, she'd be happiest of all if you just left us be."

Well, he had tried at least. It was Nami's own fault if she didn't take advantage of his implied offer.

"Okay, this will be fight to determine which of us should become the Pirate King," Luffy announced, to Naruto's confusion.

"What are you talking about?" he asked.

But Luffy was already winding up for a punch.

"Gomu Gomu no Rifle," he shouted, sending the fist at him.

Naruto, however, just activated his Tekkai and took the blow to no damage. He then summoned his five clones to surround the pirate.

"So, you're going to use your mysterious copies again, huh?" Luffy asked. "That won't work this time; I already know which one is real."

With that said, he charged straight at Naruto. One of Naruto's clones blocked his path but Luffy looked intent to plow straight through.

"Out of my way!" he ordered, sending a punch right at it.

But the clone's Tekkai held, forcing Luffy to stop his charge. He then looked back and forth between it and the real Naruto in confusion.

"Huh?" he said dumbly, then pointed to Naruto. "I thought you were the real one. Gah, I don't want to think about it. I'll just beat you all up."

He then began sending a barrage of punches at the clone that had just blocked his attack. The clone, however, easily dodged all of them. Naruto and his clones began to dance in and out of Luffy's guard, not even attacking but just testing the pirate. None of them were having any trouble avoiding all attacks.

Luffy was a little faster than when they'd last fought, but Naruto had focused heavily on improving his speed. So it was quickly clear that the difference in speed had only grown since their last encounter. Now that he had finished testing his opponent, it was time to go on the offensive.

With his clones distracting Luffy, he was easily able to get in close to the pirate captain. Then, surrounding his fist with Haki as he'd been training to do with Garp, he smashed his fist into the side of Luffy's head.

It was still an interesting sensation punching a head that was made of rubber. And his neck actually stretched out a good foot, as Luffy's head was forced to rocket away from his body, before snapping back in place.

"That hurt!" Luffy complained.

Naruto had hoped for a stronger reaction than that, but at least it had some impact.

"Just a little trick I picked up from your grandfather," he told Luffy.

"Well, it hurts more when he does it," Luffy replied petulantly, while rubbing the side of his head.

"You must realize by now that you're completely outclassed," Naruto told him. "You should save yourself some pain and give up."

"I'm not giving up," Luffy told him stubbornly. "Besides, I haven't even gotten serious yet."

"Then why don't you show me serious?" Naruto taunted.

He wasn't surprised Luffy was such a sore loser, but claiming you're not serious was one of the oldest excuses in the book. What tricks would he really have left? His body was made of rubber, there wasn't really much he could do beyond stretching it out.

So Naruto had to rub his eyes to make sure he wasn't seeing things when steam began to rise up around Luffy's body. To add to the odd sight, his skin seemed to be taking on a decidedly red tint. Perhaps there was something to his claim after all?

"Gear Second!" Luffy shouted, followed quickly by a call of "Gomu Gomu no Jet Pistol!"

His fist flew towards one of Naruto's clones almost too fast for him to follow, destroying it in a puff of smoke. As its memories hit Naruto, he realized it had even managed to get its Tekkai up in time, but the defense had proven insufficient.

Naruto quickly resummoned the clone, but had to react fast when Luffy sent another fist straight at him. Not wanting to risk defending with Tekkai, he swapped places with one of his clones, letting it take the blow for him, as it too was destroyed.

As Luffy dashed from his position to take out a third clone, it became clear to Naruto that Luffy was now faster than he was. This was a tough pill to swallow as speed was supposed to be his advantage in this fight. Now the difference in speed was roughly the same but in reverse.

Replacing his fallen clones to get back up to his full compliment of five, he began a simultaneous assault with his clones. This was no longer a fight he could deal with haphazardly; he would need to coordinate his attacks if he had any hope of success.

In the next couple of minutes of fighting, Naruto was sure he had replaced more clones than during the rest of his life combined. Despite that, he still felt the fight was going his way. By switching with his clones, he'd managed to avoid taking any hits himself, and gotten in several Haki powered blows.

That would be more comforting if his attacks had any noticeable effect on his opponent. Instead, he continued to tear through Naruto's clones without any sign of slowing. If anything, Naruto was the one feeling tired.

His weariness came to a head when Luffy annihilated two more of his clones but only one appeared when Naruto attempted to replace them. Strain as much as he could, he couldn't seem to get a fifth clone. He hadn't even known that he could exhaust his ability to use his devil fruit power.

It was clear that he'd been holding back for too long. He still had one trick up his sleeve he'd been hesitating to use as he knew it was possible Luffy would be seriously injured by it. However, he knew now he would lose if he didn't use it, so he would have to take that risk.

"Don't hold back!" he ordered his clones, knowing they would understand the message.

"I'm not holding back," Luffy answered, misinterpreting who he was speaking to.

His words, however seemed to draw Luffy's attention to him, as he ran toward Naruto sending another one of those jet pistols at him. Coming to his defense one his clones swung his leg in an arc sending a blade of air that collided with the outstretched arm, and knocking it off course.

When Luffy retracted it, Naruto could see that he'd received a shallow cut, but hadn't had his limb severed as he'd worried might happen. That was perfect; actually it was a little less damage than was ideal, but he could work with this.

"Since when can you do that?" Luffy asked accusingly.

He was now very grateful he'd had his clones training in Rankyaku while he himself was still mastering Geppou. He only wished the body sensations in the two forms were similar enough to allow better carryover of the abilities he'd learned.

Still, with that test concluded it was time to use the technique's full potential. His four remaining clones each took position at one of the compass points around Luffy. Once there, they each began employing Rankyaku to send out blade after blade of compressed air.

This was the first time he'd ever gone all out like this, and even Naruto was impressed at the sight of his own ability. Luffy was being constantly assaulted from all sides by razor sharp air. He could see the boy struggling to get away, or counterattack but every attempt was thwarted as he was just knocked back by another blast.

Luffy should just be grateful that Naruto meant him no permanent harm. His clones were deliberately avoiding his head so there wouldn't be much risk of accidentally blinding him. Finally, Luffy discovered his one route of escape by leaping into the air, retaliating almost as soon as he was clear and destroying one of Naruto's clones.

Naruto was worried momentarily that he would now be down to three, but found he was able to conjure up one clone. Thankfully he'd only lost his ability to have out five at once, not his ability to summon more. Still he wasn't sure how many more clones he could replace before his powers weakened further.

Anyway, getting a good look at the damage he had done, Naruto could see that below the neck Luffy was now covered in dozens of cuts. None of them were individually very bad at all, but put together, he would soon have to worry about blood loss.

For this reason, Naruto decided to avoid a second barrage, lest he go too far and kill his opponent. Instead, he would fight defensively and wait for his bleeding to wear him out. Assuming Naruto wasn't worn out first. This would now become a battle of endurance.

Luffy, however, wasn't going to make this easy, sending another pistol at the real Naruto. Most of the fight he's simply been switching himself out with a clone when attacked, but he had to conserve the use of his power, so he jumped out of the way instead, barely doing so in time.

Luffy followed up with a quick jet pistol from his other hand while Naruto was still in the air, but Naruto avoided it just as narrowly thanks to a timely application of Geppou. Luffy didn't seem to be weakening in the least. Perhaps he'd underestimated the damage he'd done. He might be forced to reconsider a second Rankyaku Barrage after all.

* * *

"We have to help him," Nami insisted.

"No, not yet," Robin replied.

"But I've been watching, and he's definitely taken out all of the copies," she argued. "The real one isn't even in there. He must be hiding somewhere nearby. We can take the real one out, and Luffy won't even know."

"I don't think that's it," Robin told her. "If you notice, there was one that stood back and didn't use Rankyaku. Also, there was never more than one at a time making use of Geppou."

"So you're saying it's not that the real one isn't there … ," Nami began, putting the pieces together in her own mind.

"It's that he can switch places with the fakes," Robin finished for her.

"That still doesn't help Luffy if he can't actually hurt the real one," Nami pointed out. "He's already bleeding pretty badly. If we don't help him soon it will be too late."

"Tell me," Robin began, "how many copies of him were there to begin with?"

"Um, six I think," Nami answered.

"That's right," Robin confirmed. "Yet there have only been five of them for some time now. Since right before he began using Rankyaku in fact. I believe he's getting desperate as he grows tired."

"Are you sure?" Nami asked. "Maybe he's just confident he doesn't need all six."

"I can't be completely certain it isn't a trick," Robin told her. "But I have experienced something similar, myself, on several occasions. If I use my power too much in a short period of time, the amount of body parts I can produce begins to drop. And once that point is reached, the drop-off is very swift. He must be near the end of his rope."

"So you're saying that one way or the other, this will be over very soon," Nami concluded.

* * *

As defensively as he was fighting, Naruto wasn't able to completely avoid losing clones. Although avoid it or not, he simply couldn't afford it. After losing one just now, Naruto had found himself barely able to summon a new one. If he lost even one more clone, he was sure he'd be down to three. Luffy really was forcing his hand in this fight. He couldn't afford anymore mercy.

"Again!" he called out.

Understanding his command's intent, his four clones quickly retook their positions around Luffy launching into another Rankyaku Barrage. This time, however, Naruto use Geppou to position himself directly above Luffy and stay in a sort of holding pattern.

Upon realizing he was trapped by the technique again, Luffy quickly took to the air to repeat his previous escape. That move, brought himself right to where Naruto was waiting with a Haki enhanced fist that sent the pirate plummeting right back into the maelstrom. It looked like Naruto was finally about to win this fight.

"Gear Third!" Luffy called out from below.

Naruto immediately tensed up, almost messing up his next leap with Geppou. Could he seriously take his speed to another new level? Naruto wouldn't be able to do anything against that. However, rather than becoming a blur that moved too fast to track, Luffy's right fist expanded to be much larger than the rest of his body combined.

"Gomu Gomu no Gigant Jet Whip!" Luffy shouted.

He then extended his massive arm, which completely shrugged off the effects of the air blades colliding with it. While he was doing so, he began twisting his body, and spinning his arm around in a rapid circle.

Three of his four clones were completely destroyed by the impact the rapidly moving, massive fist made when it hit them. Only the final clone was able to jump out of the way in time. For his part, Naruto leaped away from Luffy, landing on the ground some distance away.

He immediately tried to replace the destroyed clones, only to confirm that he was no longer able to create four at once. Even worse, the third one had almost been more than he could manage. He was loosing his power more quickly than he'd anticipated. All his confidence about winning the fight from just a moment ago seemed to have vanished.

"Well now, this is an entertaining show," a voice Naruto didn't recognize called out.

The figure he saw when he located the source of the voice, however, was one he recognized. Most marines had seen pictures of the three admirals, after all.

"Admiral Kizaru, sir," Naruto said, giving him a swift salute, that was mirrored by his clones. "As you can see, I have this under control. I'll have them captured shortly."

He wasn't even sure what had possessed him to say that, given he no longer had much confidence in that fact. Maybe he was subconsciously trying to defend them from the admiral. Naruto was being honest when he said that he felt capture was preferable to death for them.

"Ah, you see, after coming all the way here it wouldn't look good if I left without doing anything," Kizaru answered.

"There are plenty of other pirates around you could deal with," Naruto suggested.

"That won't do at all," Kizaru stated. "I was sent to take care of Luffy and I intend to do my job."

"I'll never let you capture me," Luffy vowed, although his voice sounded odd.

As Luffy walked up next to him, he saw that he had somehow shrunk until he was only about two feet tall. Naruto also noted that his skin had returned to its normal color, but that hardly seemed important next to the matter of his new size.

"Thanks for trying to cover for me, but I don't think he's buying that you're a marine," Luffy whispered to him. "You probably should have worn your disguise again if you wanted to try that."

Naruto was too stunned to correct him, and his mental paralysis only increased when Luffy's tiny frame walked up to Kizaru and began trying to punch him. Trying because his fists passed right through the man's legs to no effect. Nor were his attacks any more damaging when Luffy returned to his normal size a moment later.

"Oh, you're coming right to me?" Kizaru asked. "That makes this easy."

Kizaru then pulled his leg back as if preparing to kick the still futilely punching form of Luffy. The leg then began to glow with a strange, white light.

"Luffy, run!" Nami ordered him. "You can't fight him!"

Luffy growled in frustration, but followed her advice and dashed off. He had only gotten about a few dozen yards, however, when Kizaru seemed to disappear and reappear directly in front of Luffy, leg still pulled back and glowing.

"I'm not letting you get away," Kizaru promised him.

No matter what anyone felt about the matter, it looked like this was the end for Luffy. Naruto was just saying a silent prayer for his soul when a blur passed right in front of his eyes. The next thing he knew, there was a beam of light shooting up into the air, and an old man was standing in front of Admiral Kizaru.

"So, the Dark King makes his appearance?" Kizaru asked.

"Rayleigh, you got here just in time," Nami called out graciously.

Wait … Dark King … Rayleigh, as in Silvers Rayleigh? The right hand of the Pirate King? The old man was that Rayleigh?

"Thank me later, just hurry up and get out of here," Rayleigh told them.

The three pirates listened to him and turned to run, Luffy hurrying after his two crew members.

"Stop them," Kizaru ordered him, as he continued to try to get past the legendary pirate in front of him.

Following his orders, Naruto gave pursuit, only to quickly trip over something and fall flat on his face. Looking behind him he saw two feminine arms sticking up out of the ground.

"I told you not to interfered in my fight," Luffy complained, having stopped trying to catch up with his companions and turned to face Naruto.

"You'll have to finish it some other time," Nami told him angrily. "We need to get away from here."

However, before anyone could even find out if Luffy intended to comply, a large form appeared, blocking the escape of the three pirates. One that, like Kizaru's own, was taught to every marine recruit.

"Kuma!" Nami cried out in horror.

"Who are you?" Luffy demanded of him.

"He's one of the Shichibukai," Robin told him.

It seemed the Straw Hat Pirates just couldn't get a break today.

"Where would you like to go on a trip?" Kuma asked them out of the blue.

While Naruto was still trying to reason out that unusual question, Kuma placed his hand on Robin, and the woman just vanished completely.

"Robin!" Luffy yelled angrily, sprinting toward where Kuma now stood over his only remaining crew member.

Although he proved unable to reach her before Kuma's hand set down on her as well, causing her to vanish as inexplicably as Robin had.

"Nami!" Luffy cried out. "What have you done to them?"

"The same thing I did to the rest of your crew," Kuma answered. "You're the only one left."

"I won't forgive you!" Luffy vowed, ignoring his badly cut up body and leaping wildly at the man.

Kuma, however, calmly held out his palm and touched the charging Luffy. And as simply as that, the last of the Straw Hat Pirates was gone.

* * *

**AN**

This should help make up for those couple of chapters that took me a while to get out. My longest chapter ever and out only 9 days after the previous one. Anyway, the chapter may seem to cut off a bit suddenly without resolving things as well as I usually do.

I was planning on writing a little more before the end, but decided to move the last scene to the beginning of the next chapter. There really is no good place to stop between these two chapters, but if I had included that last scene you'd probably find the break even more annoying..

This chapter was a lot more complicated to write than it may seem. It's the first one I've ever written notes for. They became necessary to choreograph who was doing what, when, and making sure I could keep everything straight in my mind. A number of things got changed around from my original plans in the process.

For example, I'd actually intended to have Shino participate in the fight against Bonney, but mostly just to write about bug form being converted into a pile of maggots. But that's an image I can give you all just as well here in the notes. So, your welcome for that. I just made up the process of how her power works, seeing as it's never shown on screen that I can find.

You'll also notice that I simplified many of the scenes that I adapted from canon. It's no fun copying dialogue/action that's already in canon, nor does my experience show that it's much fun to read. So I did my best to keep the scenes I felt were necessary to copy as brief as possible.

I'm not going to give away details of the next chapter. I will, however, tell you that this one was highly action based with some important plot seeds being planted. The next chapter, by contrast, will be much more plot heavy, with the action scenes as a bonus rather than the focus. I also think it will be a very popular chapter.

Finally, this chapter isn't too far short of three times as long as the previous one, so that means I should get nearly three times as many reviews, right? Anyway, I'd love to hear your feedback on what you thought of all fights. I'm also a big fan of hearing guesses as to what I'm planning. But I'll gladly take any feedback, harsh criticism included.


	17. Chapter 17

Naruto wasn't even sure exactly what had happened after the Straw Hats' disappearance. Kizaru and Rayleigh's fight had quickly taken them out of sight, and Kuma had managed to disappear at some point without Naruto even noticing.

Finding himself alone, Naruto had a moment to gather his thoughts. Making use of that opportunity, he began to worry about Nojiko. Kuma had claimed he'd dealt with Luffy's entire crew, and Nojiko had been on her way to his ship. What if Nojiko had been caught up in the fighting?

The thought served as a jolt that set him into a motion almost immediately. He dismissed two of his remaining clones, sending the last one back to the ship to see if she'd already returned. Once that was taken care of, he set off at a run for Grove 41.

He arrived to find the Straw Hats' ship right where the memories from his clone told him it would be. Naruto didn't, however, see anyone around.

"Nojiko!" he yelled out. "Nojiko, can you hear me?"

Getting no response, Naruto switched place with his clone, finding it nearly back to the base. Pressing onward, he sped through the complex, not slowing until he was up the ramp of his ship and standing on deck. He didn't see Nojiko, but the rest of his crew had returned and were giving him odd looks.

"Does anyone know where Nojiko is?" he demanded of them.

"Wasn't she with you?" Kiba queried. "Where did you run off to anyway? I thought we were supposed to meet up at the ship."

Naruto was already turning to run back down the ramp and continue his search when Shino stopped him with a hand on his shoulder.

"I believe that's her running this way right now," Shino informed him, pointing off into the distance where she was just becoming visible.

Either he had some pretty sharp eyes, or his earlier suspicions about his honesty to Nojiko were correct. At the moment, however, he was simply relieved that Nojiko was okay. With that crisis averted, he let himself relax and wait for her to board. As soon as she had, she ran right up to Naruto looking quite worried herself.

"Did you find Nami?" she asked him hopefully.

Naruto's face immediately paled. He'd been so concerned over Nojiko, that he didn't even pause to consider he'd have to break this news to her. Still, it was best to be honest with her and just get this over as quickly as possible.

"I'm sorry Nojiko," he began weakly. "I did find her, but then Bartholomew Kuma showed up. I don't know how he did it, but he set his hand on her and she was gone, without a trace of her left. He did the same thing with Luffy and Robin."

Naruto really did feel sorry for her. He knew from experience how difficult loosing a family member was. She was probably still in shock.

"Thank goodness," she replied, letting out a sigh of relief.

"Huh?" Naruto answered, completely bewildered by her response.

Had she misheard him or did the news simply cause her to snap? She must have found something in his expression humorous, as she broke into a giggle after seeing his reaction.

"I suppose that must sound like a very odd response," she admitted. "It's just that I ran into Kuma as well. He did to Usopp exactly what you described. Only I got to talk with him briefly afterward. To summarize, he told me his power just sent them somewhere else. I admit I'm still a little worried, but wherever he sent her, it has to be safer for her than staying around here."

"So they all escaped from Kizaru?" Tashigi asked. "Did Kuma get Zoro as well?"

"So you heard about Kizaru?" Naruto asked.

"How could we not have heard about that?" Kiba replied. "The whole base was abuzz with the news."

"But what about Zoro," Tashigi asked again, insistently.

"I didn't see what happened to him, personally," Naruto admitted. "But Kuma did say he'd already dealt with the entire crew. Seeing as Zoro is the only other member of the crew with a bounty, he'd be a hard one to forget."

"Then I'll just have to hunt him down myself, wherever he is," Tashigi announced.

She sounded far less upset than he'd expected. He had his fingers crossed that his luck would hold and this wouldn't explode into another argument.

"Actually, your last statement is no longer true," Shino told him. "I found these when we arrived back at the base."

Shino was holding out a stack of wanted posters. Taking them, Naruto flipped through the papers, admittedly surprised by what he found.

"Wow, Luffy is up to 300 million beli," Naruto said out loud.

"Yeah, and it looks like the whole crew is there except for that skeleton," Kiba declared, obviously having looked over the papers already himself.

"Skeleton?" Naruto asked in confusion.

Before anyone had a chance to clarify, Nojiko grabbed one of the posters out of his hand.

"Ah, even Nami has a bounty," she exclaimed.

Naruto could almost swear he caught a touch of pride in her tone of voice.

"16 million huh?" Kiba asked. "There were times growing up I'd have loved to be able to turn in _my_ sister for that much."

"She probably would have been willing to pay them to take you off her hands," Nojiko fired back with a grin.

Further banter, however, was prevented by the ringing of the den den mushi. Naruto entered the dining room and answered it, his crew filing in behind him to listen.

"Hello," he spoke into the receiver.

"Naruto," Kakashi answered. "You're still alright, I see. I'm really hearing some crazy rumors about what's going on over there. One of them even claimed that Silvers Rayleigh himself appeared to challenge Admiral Kizaru to a fight. But I guess that one at least I can dismiss."

"You might not want to dismiss it so quickly, sir," Naruto replied.

"Well now, as much as that makes me want to hear the full report right now, that's not why I called," Kakashi informed him. "I need to inform you and your crew are being removed from under my command. Your new commanding officer is Commodore Tsume."

"What?" Kiba complained. "My mother just won't give up, will she? You're actually going to let her get away with this?"

"Calm down, Kiba," Kakashi told him. "She likely maneuvered herself into being chosen as my replacement, but it's unlikely she had anything to do with you being reassigned in the first place. You're being pulled to help defend Marineford against Whitebeard. I, on the other hand, am being sent to make sure no one else takes advantage of the newly under-defended state of some of our other regions."

"So, we're supposed to meet with the commodore in Marineford?" Naruto asked.

"Yes," he confirmed. "But you're to leave your ship behind in case it's needed there. There's a vessel already scheduled to leave for Marineford to bring more troops in about an hour. You need to be on that ship."

"If he's only telling us now, then we've probably already missed it," Kiba muttered under his breath.

"I heard that," Kakashi exclaimed, not that Kiba seemed terribly concerned by that fact. "Anyway, that's not the last of your orders. It's been decided that this will be a marine only operation. All civilians are already being evacuated from Marineford. That means you'll have to leave Shino and Nojiko behind."

"What? Why?" Nojiko complained.

"Don't ask me," Kakashi responded. "The orders came from above me, probably all the way from the top. Anyway, you don't have much time before your departure, so I recommend you start making any preparations you deem necessary. Maybe I'll get you back under my command when this war is over. If you survive that is."

And with that last cheerful declaration, Kakashi hung up.

"I can't believe I have to stay behind," Nojiko exclaimed in frustration.

"We'll come and get you again as soon as we can," Naruto promised. "And I'll make sure you have a place to stay on the base before we leave."

"That might be a while if my mom has anything to say about it," Kiba interjected.

That was an unpleasant thought. As annoying as Kakashi could be, he was pretty laid back in his leadership role. He'd give them a general mission and pretty much let them do what they want beyond that. There was no guarantee Kiba's mother would be anywhere near as permissive.

"Kiba is right," he admitted. "I can't promise when exactly we'll be back. So I'd understand if you moved on to other things."

"I'll remain here for the immediate future," Shino replied. "There's plenty of work I can do to keep myself occupied."

"I don't see as I really have much choice," Nojiko added. "It's not like I can really go anywhere on my own."

"It's probably is for the best," Tashigi told Nojiko. "This is going to major a major battle, and you're not trained for that. You'll be much safer here."

Thankfully, her words sounded genuine enough, if a little too cheerful. He really didn't understand those two. Half the time they seemed to almost get along, but you never knew when the next explosion would come.

"Anyway," Naruto cut in, not wanting to give Nojiko a chance to take offense to Tashigi's words, "if all goes well, we'll be back in a couple of weeks."

"I suspect you'll be gone much longer than that," Ebisu declared from the entrance to the dining room.

"And just where have you been?" Naruto asked. "I thought you were going to stay on the ship."

He'd been wondering where the World Government agent had gone off to. Not that he'd been too worried, as he was simply enjoying his time away from the man.

"Yes, and I'm glad you believed me," he answered. "Because thinking you were out from under my sight was all it took to reveal your true colors."

"You mean you've been spying on me?" Naruto queried.

"Yes, and I admit I'm quite shocked by what I saw," he replied. "You've quite clearly confirmed your ties to the Straw Hat Pirates. To start with, you chose to pursue Jewelry Bonney over Zoro despite the sound tactical advice of Shino here."

"That was only because I decided that Bonney was the more dangerous of the two," Naruto argued.

"You consider the one who goes around attacking tenryuubito to be less dangerous than the one who stops him?" Ebisu inquired smugly. "I doubt you'll have much luck with that defense."

"But if you've been following me, you saw my fight with Luffy," he protested, at the moment more concerned with Ebisu than he was with revealing that fact to Nojiko. "If I were working with him, then why would we fight like that?"

"If I recall correctly, that little display was a 'duel to determine which of you would become the Pirate King,' Ebisu answered. "Hardly the sort of position a respectable marine would want."

Naruto resisted the urge to swear. He had forgotten about that.

"I have no idea what Luffy was thinking," Naruto insisted. "But he was obviously didn't know what he was talking about."

"And I thought your last line was bad," Ebisu mocked. "But claiming your associate was merely confused when he revealed that you were a pirate during your secret meeting? That has to be the dumbest argument I've ever heard."

Naruto bit his tongue to try to cool down. Yelling at the man wasn't going to help anything.

"But the big surprise was Silvers Rayleigh coming to Luffy's defense," Ebisu exclaimed. "This may be much bigger than we'd imagined. The mere possibility you're working with him would be enough to have you locked up by itself. He's not the type of man we can afford to take risks with."

"Wait, Rayleigh really was there?" Kiba asked incredulously. "I thought you were just messing with Kakashi."

"Anyway," Ebisu continued, ignoring Kiba's interruption, "if I had the authority I'd have you locked up right now. I assure you I'll make sure you're safely incarcerated as soon as we return to Marineford. I'll be waiting for you on the transport ship. The only advice I can give you is not to attempt to run away. It would only make things worse for you."

Watching Ebisu depart, Naruto was fuming to such a degree, that when he heard a growl, for a moment he thought it had been his own. The real source, he quickly realized, was Akamaru, seeming to mirror his own feelings for the man.

"And keep that filthy mutt away from me," Ebisu called back as he continued to walk off.

Kiba flipped the man off as soon as his back was turned, showing a surprising amount of restraint compared to usual just in the fact that he'd waited until he wasn't looking.

"I apologize for letting him spy on you undetected," Shino declared suddenly. "I tried to track him with one of my bugs more than once, but he somehow located and dispatched them on each occasion."

"Well, if you're worried about being locked up, you could always run away," Nojiko suggested jokingly. "I'm sure Luffy would have a spot on his crew for someone he would consider a rival to become the next Pirate King."

"There won't be any need," Tashigi assured them. "We'll make sure Ebisu doesn't get his way."

"Yeah," Kiba agreed. "Who would listen to an arrogant windbag like him in the first place?"

"If matters do go less smoothly than anticipated, send word to me," Shino suggested. "I believe my testimony would aid your case."

Naruto felt a deep sense of pride in his crew. Not one of them seemed to consider even for a moment that the allegations might be true. He wasn't entirely certain he'd done much to earn such trust, but he'd have to do his best to live up to it.

"Alright, we've got some packing to do, and I won't give Ebisu the satisfaction of arriving even a minute late," Naruto exclaimed. "So let's get to it."

* * *

The trip back to Marineford had been short, but decidedly unpleasant. Ebisu had all but delighted in constantly bumping into him wherever he went and generally doing his best to make Naruto miserable. He rarely even said anything out loud. His look of self-satisfaction really did all the speaking for him. To top it all off, he was once again being plagued by a headache, although Ebisu was most likely to blame for that as well.

As much as Ebisu made the journey drag on, they did eventually arrive. It was, however, well after dark by that time. Having all his belongings ready, Naruto met up with Kiba and Tashigi as they prepared to depart.

It would be a huge relief to get his assigned quarters and get away from the intolerable World Government agent for a while. They followed a crowd of other marines down the ramp, but once they'd reached the dock, Naruto was confronted by three men in black uniforms.

"Namikaze Naruto, you have been found guilty of treason," one of them announced, eliciting a gasp from Tashigi. "If you refuse to come with us peacefully, we are authorized to use all necessary force to subdue you.

"You can't do that!" Tashigi yelled, ignoring the fact that they were drawing a crowd of gawking marines. "He hasn't even been given a chance to defend himself."

"He was given a chance," Ebisu countered, having followed them down the ramp at some point. "However, I called ahead, and my superiors agree that the new evidence in irrefutable. Furthermore, he's simply too dangerous to be allowed to wander free."

"He's not going anywhere until I'm convinced this arrest has been properly authorized," Tashigi insisted. "I refuse to believe this would be allowed to go through on such flimsy evidence."

"It's alright," Naruto told her in an attempt to calm her down. "Making a scene won't do me any good. I'll be fine going with them for now. It shouldn't take us long to clear things up."

"Well I'm going to get my mother," Kiba declared. "She'll straighten this out in no time."

Kiba then darted off toward the town, Akamaru following behind him.

"If you're done getting all emotional, perhaps we can get on with this," Ebisu interjected. "I would like to get some sleep tonight."

Nodding, Naruto walked along behind Ebisu, as the three uniformed men surrounded him and Tashigi trotted along beside the group. After a few minutes of twists and turns, they arrived at a rather nondescript single story building. He wasn't able to make much out of it in the dark before he was quickly ushered inside.

Giving his eyes a moment to adjust to the brighter light indoors, he found himself inside a rather sterile looking white office with no furniture beyond a single desk. Even the desk didn't seem to be heavily used, with nothing more than a few pens and a stack of a paper on it.

"Get a move on," one of the guards ordered, apparently not approving of his stopping to take in his surroundings.

Following Ebisu into the room, he was led to another door in the back of the office. As he walked through it, he came to a room containing two holding cells, neither of which were currently occupied. The room also had a section where one could view the prisoners, but it obviously hadn't been made to hold many people, as it was a bit crowded even with just the six of them.

"In you go," Ebisu directed, holding the door open to one of the cells.

Naruto walked in peacefully, treating it as a form of rebellion in his mind. He was sure the man would love for him to make a scene. As soon as he was inside, Ebisu slammed the cell door shut and locked it.

"Don't get too used to the room," Ebisu taunted. "You'll be on the next transport to Impel Down. You'll only wish you had accommodations this nice once you get there. Now, with everything taken care of, I can finally retire for the night."

So saying, he turned to head back out the door, but paused to look back once more.

"Oh, and you can stay and chat with your captain if you'd like," he told Tashigi, "but try anything and you'll be in the cell next to him."

This time he really did depart, with the guards following him out. The door shut behind them leaving him alone with Tashigi. Getting a chance to look around, he realized it really wasn't that bad as far as jail cells went. To start with it was completely spotless; he'd wager it had never even been used before.

There were metal bars for three of the walls, with the hard stone wall of the building making the final wall. He didn't get any windows, but there was a bed bolted to the stone wall that looked functional, if not exactly luxurious. He did find it a bit awkward having Tashigi standing their staring at him through the cell bars.

"There's no way they can just have you sent off to Impel Down like that," Tashigi complained. "Not on the words of a single man. He seems like he's completely out to get you. I can only imagine the lies he told to get this ruling."

"I'm sure it won't come to that," Naruto assured her. "I'd wager Kiba's mother is already on her way with the keys to let me out. Anyway, there isn't really much you can do here, so you should probably go get some rest. The last thing you want to do is make yourself sick right before the big fight."

"I don't think I'd be able to sleep with you still in here anyway," Tashigi told him.

"You should try anyway," Naruto insisted. "Anyway, I'll need you out of here if _I'm_ going to get any sleep."

He was pretty certain he'd be doing nothing of the sort, but suggested it anyway for Tashigi's sake. It wouldn't do her any good to stand there pacing around all night. Still, she looked unconvinced by his words. He was certain she was about to argue further, but before she could, the door opened and Ebisu walked back inside.

"What are you doing back?" Naruto asked suspiciously.

"I'm letting you go," he answered, taking out the key and unlocking his cell.

"So Commodore Tsume got through already?" Naruto asked, impressed by her speed.

"No," he replied. "You were never found guilty of anything in the first place. This whole thing was an act. I could hardly have expected you to be foolish enough to reveal anything incriminating while I was around. So from the start I did my best to convince you that keeping your cover was hopeless. I was attempting to put your back to the wall so you'd do something desperate and give yourself away."

"What about all that stuff from when you were spying on Naruto?" Tashigi asked, not seeming to trust his sudden change of heart.

Come to think of it, maybe Naruto shouldn't be so accepting of this himself. He wouldn't put it past Ebisu to set this up to 'catch them attempting an escape.'

"Please," he answered, "I'm an elite agent of the World Government. I can read a situation well enough to see what was really going on. Luffy's strange claim aside, Naruto's own words and actions made it quite clear he really was attempting to capture his opponent. And while his implied offer to the young Nami may not have been a bit questionable, it's hardly a concern worthy of the World Government's attention."

Naruto was finally beginning to put aside his doubts and accept he really was being released, so pushing open the now unlocked door, he exited out of the pen. As short a time as he'd been in there, it still felt good to be out of the cell.

"So all this time you were just pretending to be an arrogant jerk?" Naruto asked in amusement. "You're pretty good; you had me completely fooled."

"I may have pretended to be convinced of your guilt," Ebisu replied, clearly taking affront to his statement, "but my behavior was above reproach the entire time. At no time would it be considered any less than civil."

Naruto wondered briefly if this was a joke on the man's part, but he looked completely serious. Well, Naruto's mood had improved such that he chose not to antagonize the man by challenging his claim.

"I really should have suspected something was up when you didn't even put me in seastone handcuffs," Naruto said instead. "I mean you knew I had a devil fruit ability. You just wanted to see if I'd try to escape."

"Exactly," he confirmed. "If it were up to me I'd have left you in there for a few days, but we really do need every hand we can get to deal with Whitebeard. And I saw for myself that you're strength is quite real, so it would be foolish to not make use of you."

Naruto was actually surprised to hear the man say something positive about him. The fact that he had been so hostile seemed to make his acknowledgment of Naruto's strength all the sweeter.

"Besides," he continued, "Blackbeard has been chosen, along with Doflamingo, to fill in the openings for the Shichibukai. Even if you were working for him, he could just admit that and get his pardon extended to you. Blackbeard's lackey or not, we'll all be on the same side for this war."

"Speaking of the war, if we're done here we should report in," Tashigi interjected.

"You're right," Naruto agreed. "Let's get out of here."

Ebisu made no move to stop him as he opened the door and returned to the main office. He noted that the guards from earlier where nowhere in sight. He was heading for the exit to the building but pulled up short when Kiba burst through the door with his mother and Akamaru close on his heels.

"What's going on here?" Tsume demanded to know.

"Not much," Ebisu answered her. "I just finished having a discussion with Naruto here and now that everything is cleared up, we were all going on our ways."

Hearing his response, Tsume turned angrily on her son.

"You woke up your commanding officer and dragged her all the way out here over this?" she asked dangerously. "It certainly doesn't look like he was found guilty of treason to me."

"Hey! I'm only repeating what they said," Kiba told her defensively.

"I think I'd remember something like that," Naruto interjected, feeling a bit mischievous.

The temperature around Tsume seemed to shoot up a few more degrees and Kiba shot him a look of betrayal. Feeling a bit sorry for his friend, he decided to diffuse the situation a bit after all.

"It really did look much worse than it was when he went to get you," Naruto assured her.

She looked at him suspiciously, probably wondering if he was just lying to protect Kiba, but did calm a little.

"We'll still talk about this later," she declared. "But as long as I'm up I may as well explain our orders. I've been put in charge of the task force that's being sent to escort Fire Fist Ace to Marineford. We'll be leaving tomorrow morning to guard Impel Down until it's time to transport him. Now, if you'll follow me I'll get you some quarters and we can all get some sleep."

Now that sounded like an interesting assignment. They'd be at the center of the whole execution process. Things certainly had taken a sudden turn for the better. Now if only that headache would go away he'd be all set.

* * *

Nojiko had risen bright and early in the morning. Naruto had done as he'd promised and arranged a place for her to stay on the marine base while he was gone. If he expected her to just sit around and do nothing, however, he was sadly mistaken.

Usopp had mentioned a place called Shakky's Bar, and not having anything better to do, she had decided to investigate the place. Maybe she could find out something about what her sister had been up to or how she could get in contact with her.

With that plan in mind, she had searched out a marine who could direct her to the bar, a task didn't take long. Although the man she found had been a bit reluctant to tell her, insisting it wasn't the safest place to visit. In the end, however, he'd relented, claiming it wasn't his fault if she ended up broke.

Now she found herself in Grove 13 and staring at her target. There was a large sign on the front proclaiming the building as Shakky's Rip-off Bar. What kind of advertizing was that anyway? Perhaps the man hadn't been exaggerating his warnings after all.

Still, she wasn't going to turn back now, and she wasn't here to buy anything in the first place, so she'd probably be alright. Entering, she found the bar deserted save for a lone woman. She was a tall, slim, dark haired woman wearing a very low cut shirt. The woman paused from smoking a cigarette she was holding to address Nojiko.

"Welcome to my bar, is there anything I can get you?" she asked.

"Your bar?" Nojiko repeated. "So you're Shakky then?"

"That's right," she confirmed.

"Well, I just came to ask if the Straw Hat Pirates were here yesterday," Nojiko informed her.

"Information is quite valuable," Shakky responded. "Why don't you tell me why it is you want to know? Then I'll decide if I'm willing to sell it to you."

"I'm just trying to find out what my sister has been up to," she replied honestly.

"Ah, so you're that sister of Nami's who works with the marines," Shakky answered knowingly.

"How do you know about that?" Nojiko asked in surprise.

Her relationship to Nami wasn't exactly common knowledge.

"Well, the Straw Hats couldn't help but mention it when they came to my bar the other day," she answered. "Not after what your friends did to them."

"Yeah," Nojiko replied, "they're good people overall, but they can be a bit stubborn about the whole 'capturing pirates' thing.

"You don't need to explain," Shakky assured her. "I've known a few marines myself, so I understand what it's like. Anyway, I'll tell you what I can about Nami. Do you already know about Kuma scattering them?"

"Yeah, I spoke to Kuma, myself," she answered. "Did you run into him as well?"

"No, but Ray mentioned it to me when he got back," Shakky told her.

Ray said something? She couldn't possibly mean Silver Rayleigh could she? Who would refer to a man like that so casually?

"But back to the point," she continued, "they all have a vivre card that will lead them back here. Their ship is getting coated in the meantime, so they can take it to the New World. I'm afraid I really don't know much beyond that."

"Thanks, that was more than I knew coming in," Nojiko replied, before pausing to consider her earlier words. "Wait, you aren't going to charge me for this, are you?"

"I wouldn't do that to Nami's sister," she answered cheerfully. "I'm something of a fan of Luffy and his crew. But if you do want to pay me back, you can tell me why you came all the way out here by yourself just to ask me that."

"I didn't have anything better to do," Nojiko admitted, glad that this was all she had to pay for the information. "The marines I travel with got called back to Marineford for the fight against Whitebeard, but they're not allowed to bring any civilians."

"Ah, so you got left behind," Shakky commiserated. "That can't be easy."

"The worst part is that Tashigi claimed it was better that way," Nojiko complained. "She said I'd be safer here. I'm really good with a gun, and I've fought with them before. It's not like I couldn't contribute."

She wasn't exactly sure why she was telling this woman she'd just met all this. Maybe she just needed to vent. Maybe it was because she was bored and felt conversation was better than nothing.

"Ah, so you're a sharpshooter type, huh?" Shakky asked rhetorically. "And you don't feel she appreciates all the hard work you've put into that."

"Well, I haven't exactly worked very hard on it," Nojiko admitted. "I'd never even fired a gun until recently. I don't mean to brag, but I'm just quite good with guns naturally."

"Is that so?" Shakky asked, looking genuinely interested. "Since you have plenty of free time, would you mind letting me test your skills a bit?"

"I don't see why not," she answered.

"Great," Shakky replied. "Just wait outside and I'll be out in a moment."

Doing as she was told, Shakky soon followed her outside carrying and armful of empty bottles. Walking over to an open area, she set all but one of them on the ground by her feet.

"This is going to be a simple test," she announced. "I'm going to throw the bottle up in the air. Once I let go, I want you shoot it as quickly as you can."

"Won't the broken glass be dangerous?" Nojiko asked, not wanting to hurt the woman.

"I appreciate the concern, but I'll be fine," Shakky assured her.

Nojiko pulled out her gun and snapped a clip into place, even though she wasn't certain she saw the point to this test. Shakky was only standing about twenty feet away, hardly a difficult shot. Then again, if Nojiko had someone shooting something that was that close to her, she wouldn't want to push their skill to the limit either. Although if she was worried about that, why was she doing it this way in the first place?

She'd have to think about that later, however, as Shakky's arm was already in motion lifting the bottle into the air. Nojiko tracked the object and fired, watching it shatter into pieces after traveling less than a foot from where it had been released.

"Surely you can do better than that," Shakky told her, clearly not at all impressed. "We'll consider that one a practice run."

Nojiko wasn't sure she appreciated her attitude. She was trying to give her a little time to pull her arm away from the glass. Well, she'd already said she would be fine, so it'd be her own fault if she got injured as Nojiko wasn't going to hold back this time.

Picking up a second bottle, Shakky once again rapidly swung her arm up and tossed it into the air. This time, the bottle exploded about two inches from where Shakky's hand had just released it. Not only that, Shakky had definitely thrown it harder this time, making her improvement all the more telling.

"Better," Shakky said neutrally, "but there's still room for improvement. Let's try one more."

Nojiko ground her teeth in response to that assessment. She was determined, however, not to give up yet. She'd show her exactly how close she could get it this time. Shakky wasted little time in grabbing another bottle. This time, Nojiko kept a bead on the bottle the entire time while keeping a close watch on Shakky's hand.

As the arc neared the top, she finally saw what she was looking for as the fingers began to loosen their grips. Nojiko tensed as the moment came, but rather than fire, she simply dropped her aim, letting her arm fall back to her sides. She was glad she had, as in an attempt to trick her, Shakky hadn't actually released the bottle this time, canceling the action at the last moment.

"Good, you didn't fall for that," Shakky praised her, sounding genuinely pleased for once. "Still, I have to agree with your friend. You're better off staying behind."

"How can you say that?" Nojiko complained. "You've hardly seen what I can do at all."

"No, I'm impressed enough with your shooting," Shakky told her, "but unless I'm mistaken that's all you can do. Tell me, what if you were surrounded by more enemies than you could deal with before you were overwhelmed?"

"I guess I'd take out as many as I could before they got to me," Nojiko answered grimly.

"So you'd end up defenseless and depend on your friends to protect you?" the woman asked. "Being a distraction like that, you'd probably do more harm than good in a fight. In addition, you said you weren't even putting much work into training. On the other hand, as good as I hear they are, your companions must be training pretty hard. So as things stand, they're only going to get further and further ahead of you."

Her words did hit Nojiko a bit harder than she'd like. What _had_ she done to contribute to their fights? She'd helped Tashigi defeat Kimimaro, but since then she hadn't really done anything. She'd stayed behind on the ship when they fought Orochimaru, and she'd been less than useless against Bonney and her men. She wanted to help, but if what Shakky was saying was true, she was at loss as to how she could.

"Well, what am I supposed to do?" Nojiko asked. "Guns aren't like swords or hand to hand fighting. You point and shoot, there's only so far you can take it."

"If you really want to take your training seriously, you can start right now by running laps around the grove," Shakky answered.

"How is that supposed to help?" Nojiko asked, confused by her advice.

"Well, to start with, one way to deal with the situation I mentioned is not to get surrounded in the first place," she answered. "However, like all training, you need to start with the basics. So to keep yourself from getting in a bad position you need to be able to move fast without getting tired. So I suggest you start running."

Nojiko immediately had a wave of second thoughts. She stayed reasonably fit, but she'd never been one to really enjoy heavy exercise. As quickly as they'd rose up, however, Nojiko fought them back down. Shakky was right, as things were she might end up just being a burden. She wasn't going to let a little running scare her away from fixing that.

"So just run laps around Grove 13?" she asked.

"That's right," Shakky confirmed. "Take breaks when you need to, but _do_ try to push yourself."

"I'm off then," Nojiko told her, picking a direction and setting off toward the edge of the grove.

She sped up to a light jog and settled in at that speed. Nojiko supposed it would have been a good idea to ask how fast she should be running. Would it be better training to run faster and take frequent breaks or run at a pace that was more sustainable and keep it up as long as possible? Maybe she could mix it up a bit. Start off slowly and after her first break she could try some faster running.

She had been jogging for several minutes and was really getting into a rhythm when she felt something hard hit her in the back of her head. Whatever it was, it had been small enough that it hadn't done any real damage, but she did wonder if it would end up swelling into a nice lump.

Hearing whatever had hit her bounce to the ground, she searched the behind her and found a small stone, only a pebble really, lying there a short distance away.

"Is something wrong?" Shakky asked, which came as a surprise to Nojiko as she'd assumed the woman had stayed back at the bar.

However, with her standing a short distance back, and no one else in sight, Nojiko was quickly able to conclude what had happened.

"What was that for?" she demanded to know.

"What was what for?" Shakky answered innocently.

"This stone that hit me in the back of the head," Nojiko supplied, holding the offending object in front of her. "Unless you want to claim it decided to attack me on its own."

"Stranger things have happened," she replied. "Now I hope you're not just using this as an excuse to get out of your training. I'd hate to see you give up so soon."

Despite still being bitter about the surprise attack, Nojiko held her tongue. Maybe this was just an overly cruel way of telling her she hadn't been trying hard enough. Hoping that was all it was, Nojiko set out again at a faster jog.

After only a minute of this new speed, Nojiko was already breathing very heavily. She was pushing herself pretty hard now, especially considering she'd already been jogging for a while at her earlier pace. Still, she was determined to press onward. Shakky had told her to push herself, and she was going to do just that.

Just as she thought that, she felt another impact against her body. This time it hit the back of her left shoulder hard enough to leave a welt and cause her to involuntarily yelp in surprise. Turning around she confirmed what she suspected. There was another pebble on the ground and Shakky was calmly standing there watching her.

"If there's something you don't like about my running, you could just tell me," Nojiko told her dryly.

"Why would you think that?" Shakky replied unhelpfully. "You're doing just fine with your training. Although you may want to be a bit more careful, you seem to keep having accidents."

Nojiko ground her teeth at that but didn't protest. Perhaps this was a test of her determination, and if that's what it was, Nojiko wasn't about to falter. As proof of her resolve, Nojiko resumed her previous course, moving even faster than before.

* * *

Shino was going to make good use his time on the Sabaody Archipelago. There had been too many battles recently in which he'd performed far from optimally. Granted Blackbeard's ability to neutralize the powers of his opponents was unique and would be difficult to handle in any case. Unfortunately, that wasn't the only example.

Orochimaru and Franky had both succeeded in destroying a large enough number of his bugs to force him back to his human form. Those fights had served as an important reminder that while his transformation gave many defensive advantages, it was far from making him invulnerable.

Shino had perhaps been too dependent on the offensive nature of his power. Back when he was working alone, as a bounty hunter, he'd usually just gone straight for his opponents and let his venom do its work. This was especially effective considering most pirates relied on guns and swords, which would harm too few of his bugs to be of concern.

He'd now been shown how lax he had become, but he could work to correct that. If he had been able to react more quickly, he might have been able to dodge Franky's fire or at least reduce the damage he'd taken. He could also, have dodged Orochimaru's attack in the same manner.

The difficult part with that was how unnatural movement in his alternate form was. As a human, if someone threw a punch at him, he would instinctively block or dodge. In his insect form, he could split the swarm to dodge, but doing so took a conscious effort on his part. Yet the time it took him to make that effort could hardly be afforded in a high level battle.

His plan to combat that was to spend as much time as possible, for the immediate future, in his transformed state. Save for basic necessities, such as eating and sleeping, he would spend all his time getting used to the form and making its movements as natural as possible. If he could succeed, the benefits would be dramatic. One could even claim it would take his abilities to a new level.

* * *

Naruto had to admit he was almost gaping as he watched the Gate of Justice open. He'd never seen any of them up close before, this being his first time on the Tairai Current. It wasn't exactly ideal to go from Marineford to Impel Down via the current, as they'd have to pass by Enies Lobby, but with the aid of the current they'd at least be setting a swift pace.

He was currently on Tsume's flagship, which was at the head of an impressive task force of ships. He almost felt he should be insulted he wasn't given command of a ship himself; he was a captain after all. Still, he kind of preferred it this way for the moment. He didn't want to deal with a crew full of strangers when he was hoping this assignment wouldn't last much more than a week.

For now, he was content to stay where he was and just take in the scenery. As the ship moved through the enormous gates, he saw Kiba's sister approaching him.

"Quite a sight isn't it?" she asked him.

"Yeah, how would you even build something like that?" Naruto asked idly.

"Don't ask me," Hana replied. "Anyway, this works out pretty well with the both of you on the ship, doesn't it? Mom doesn't have to worry about what Kiba's up to, nor does she doesn't have to yank him away from his friends."

"Maybe if the rest of my crew was here," Naruto said unenthusiastically, "but even then, I've kind of taken a liking to having my own command."

"I'm not surprised you feel that way," she answered, "but at least now you can say I tried to convince you if the commodore asks. To be honest I don't think Kiba would enjoy this arrangement much either."

It seemed a bit odd how laid-back Hana seemed compared to her relatives. That descriptions was certainly not one he would ever consider ascribing to Kiba or Tsume. It almost made him want to ask if they were really related. Then again, she might consider that rude, and besides that, he knew even close family members could have very different personalities.

"Where is Kiba anyway?" Naruto queried. "I haven't seen him since last night."

"Still getting earful from our mother, I'm sure," she answered. "A word of advice: learn from Kiba's mistake and never wake the commodore when she's asleep for anything less than the room being on fire. Even then, you'd probably want to see if you could move her bed to safety without waking her."

"Well, it was nice to finally get a chance to talk to you," she told him. "I guess I'll see you around."

As she walked off, Naruto went back to gazing out at the Gate which the ship had now completely passed through. As it began to fall off into the distance, he got bored and decided to find something to do. He soon located Tashigi in a large hold below deck.

Somehow or another she'd ended up giving lessons in swordplay to a crowd of marines. The men stood their in rows with wooden swords trying to duplicate the moves she was showing them, but none of them looked terribly skilled. It made Tashigi appear all the more adept in comparison.

Anyway, not wanting to get in her way, he left to find something else to occupy his time. This proved to be harder than he would have anticipated. With Kiba and Tashigi both tied up, he decided to help out with some of the ship chores.

Yet it seemed he was too highly ranked an officer to do anything so menial. If he so much as thought of touching a mop, some young seaman would run up and offer to do it for him. It figured that the one time he wanted to just be treated like one of the crew was also the first time anyone treated like he really was a captain.

He managed to amuse himself for a while by walking around with his clones just to watch the reactions of the crew. But word of his powers soon spread, and while they still seemed a bit awed by his power, with the more muted responses the activity soon lost its luster.

With nothing better to do, Naruto even went to his quarters to try to nap. As it turned out, he was too well rested from last night. With how relieved he'd been when everything had worked out, he'd slept like a log.

And to top it all off, that night of rest that was preventing his daytime slumber had proven inadequate to cure him of whatever was causing his headache. Still, that at least was little more than a nuisance, hardly worth speaking of. It was really just the icing on the cake of what was turning into a dull and unpleasant day.

Despite his problems, Naruto somehow managed to make it through the journey as their task force left the Tairai current and docked at Impel Down. He knew most of the structure was underwater, but even the stone wall surrounding the complex was impressive. It was built nearly as high as the tip of their main mast.

He was pulled away from his examination of the architecture by the sound of yelling. He saw Hana and a group of three other marines escorting Jewelry Bonney off the ship toward Impel Down. Naruto was surprised at the sight as he'd been completely unaware they'd even been transporting her.

"I just want you to know that I have all your face memorized," she told them sharply. "If I ever get out of here, I'm going to hunt each and every one of you down."

"I don't think I'll lose any sleep over it," Hana replied casually. "In all its history, only one person has ever escaped Impel Down. Personally, I don't think there's much risk you'll cut off your feet and fly out of here to become the second."

Bonney didn't seem to have a response for this and Hana soon prodded her onward. It didn't look like she had spotted Naruto as he was pretty sure he'd have elicited a set of threats of his own if she had. She was soon led down the ramp and disappeared into the facility.

Not long after that, her men were lined up and led out toward the same building. It was then that Naruto realized that there hadn't been much reason to look forward to their arrival at Impel Down.

Just being here didn't give him anything more to do than when they sailing. It was now a waiting game to see when Whitebeard would make his move. Well, at the very least he could get some training in if he could find a space that wasn't too crowded. He'd want to be as prepared as possible for the upcoming battle.

* * *

Nojiko's second day of training was going pretty much the same as her first had. She was still running laps and Shakky hadn't let up in her practice of periodically pelting her with stones.

The back half of her body was beginning to feel like one giant bruise, and this was on top of the near overwhelming exhaustion that resulted from all her running. She couldn't find any rhyme or reason to it. She'd get hit whether she was jogging or resting. She'd even found herself made a target when she practiced sprinting.

Nojiko had long since given up making any comments when it occurred. Shakky steadfastly refused to admit she had anything to do with the stone projectiles. Nojiko knew the intelligent thing to do would probably be to just do her training on the marine base away from Shakky. It was only pure stubbornness that kept her going at this point.

The worst part wasn't even the actual attacks. It was the waiting for the inevitable assault that really got to her. She found herself constantly on edge, wondering when the next one would come. She was so focused on the stones that she actually had an image of herself getting hit on the back of her head flash through her mind causing her to instinctively duck.

Even as she was dropping to the ground, she already felt foolish about the action. At least she did until a stone whizzed past above her head, brushing past the top of her hair as it did. Nojiko just stared in shock as it continued on and collided with a tree.

"Finally," Shakky announced from her usual position behind her. "I was beginning to think I'd been wrong about you."

"What are you talking about?" Nojiko asked, after struggling briefly to get her breathing at least somewhat under control.

"Do you know how you just dodged that rock?" she queried.

"I don't know, maybe I subconsciously heard something behind me," Nojiko answered.

"I may be a little out of practice," Shakky admitted, "but I haven't let myself go so far that a young girl like you would hear me when I don't want to be heard."

"What else could it be?" she asked in confusion. "Are you saying it was just luck?"

"No, it was something else entirely," Shakky answered, still being annoyingly vague. "Tell me, do you recall how you didn't fall for my feigned toss when I tested you before?"

"Yeah, but what does that have to do with this?" Nojiko inquired, getting tired of this beating around the bush.

"You probably didn't notice, but you began to lower your weapon slightly before I gave any sign that I wasn't actually going to throw it," Shakky informed her.

"Are you trying to say I'm psychic or something?" she asked, now beginning to wonder if this whole conversation was just another way for Shakky to mess with her.

"That's actually not too far off," Shakky replied. "What you're using is called Haki."

Haki? Hadn't that been what Naruto had said he was training in recently? But what he had been trying to do didn't sound at all like seeing the future.

"My captain was training in Haki," she informed Shakky, "but he said it was something that would allow his punches to hurt even logia users."

"That's Busoushoku Haki; you're using Kenbunshoku Haki," Shakky clarified. "I suspected you might have a talent for it when you said you were good with a gun despite not putting much training into it. For you see, there are a small number of people who naturally make use of Kenbunshoku Haki to some degree. In your case, you're not a good shot because of any exceptional skill at aiming. It's because you instinctively know where your bullet will go when you fire."

Actually, her words were beginning to make a lot of sense. Nojiko did always get an image in her mind of hitting her target before firing. She'd always assumed she was just visualizing her goal as a way to focus. It was also true that she had caught a mental glimpse of the rock hitting her right before she'd ducked under it.

"If you already knew, then what was with these tests?" Nojiko asked, still more than a little irked by how painful the process had been.

"Well, I was pretty sure that you could use it after you passed my first test," Shakky admitted, "but it was still possible that you were just really good at reading me and could tell I was planning to trick you. So I had to make sure."

"I would have preferred if you'd come up with another way to test me," she grumbled.

"It wasn't just a test, it was also the start of your training," Shakky declared. "With enough practice, you'll be able to sense where anyone near you is located, even if they're out of sight. A skilled Kenbunshoku Haki user is nearly impossible to sneak up on. Of course there's also the ability to predict your opponents' moves that I already mentioned. I believe that an ability like that could be of some use to your companions."

Shakky was certainly right about that. If it was even half of what she was claiming it to be, it would be an amazing asset. And she was supposed to have a natural talent for it. Nojiko could hardly contain her excitement.

"So you're willing to train me to use it?" she asked hopefully.

"I'd be happy to," Shakky answered graciously. "I must admit that, seeing you work so hard this past day, I've taken a bit of a liking to you."

"Great, when can we start?" she asked enthusiastically.

"We already have," Shakky replied with a touch of amusement in her voice. "You're welcome to continue any time you're ready."

She hoped Shakky didn't mean what Nojiko thought she meant.

"You want me to start running again?" Nojiko complained. "I thought we were going to train my Haki."

"Everything I said before about getting in shape still holds true," she answered. "Beyond that, the rock method is a very effective form of basic training. Not only does it give you practice in using your ability, it gets you in the habit of staying focused at all times."

It was just as she'd feared. She couldn't resist letting out a groan, but she didn't complain any further as she turned and began to trudge off again. Her legs resisted the effort to start moving again, seeming to have done their best to take root while she'd been resting. Nevertheless, she forced herself onward. She wasn't going to give anyone room to think she was a burden to the crew ever again.

* * *

Naruto had gotten a lot of training done over the last week. He was really starting to get his Kami-e down, so that was basically all six of the Rokushiki mastered, between him and his clones. Although perhaps it was a bit soon to be calling his Kami-e mastered, his movements when dodging really weren't quite as smooth as he'd have liked.

As for his clones, they were getting quite adept at Geppou, leaping through the air all over the place during training. His mind had already been working through possible variations for his Rankyaku Barrage that incorporated aerial angles. Overall it had been a very satisfying week in that regard.

In virtually every other regard it had been miserable. Naruto wasn't averse to hard work, but he liked to have some time to wind down each day. Yet two of his crew members were gone and the other two seemed to be constantly unavailable. Tashigi's swordplay lessons remained a big hit with the crew, and Kiba seemed to be doing his best to stay out of sight and away from his mother.

Oh he supposed it really hadn't been that bad. He found some time to talk with his friends, and he'd even had a few decent conversations with the normal crew of this ship. Mostly he was just complaining because he was in a bad mood. There were two factors for responsible for this.

The first was the waiting itself. Just sitting here constantly wondering when and if something was going to happen. Things had only gotten tenser after they'd heard the news that all marine ships that had been keeping an eye on Whitebeard had been wiped out.

The man was definitely preparing to move, it was just a question of when and where. Would he assault Impel Down to attempt to free Ace, or wait till he was transported to Marineford and strike there?

The second reason was this infernal headache of his. Not only had it remained the entire week, but it slowly grown worse. He knew he should have gone to a doctor some time ago, but he was worried he would be pulled from the fight if they found something wrong with him. And while the pain was horribly annoying, it wouldn't have a serious effect on his ability to fight.

Seeing as the execution was schedule for tomorrow, he'd tough it out for one more day. For now, he was taking a break from his training to stare out toward the horizon, still somewhat on edge knowing that at any moment Whitebeard's ships could appear. It had become a common practice among the crew of late. There were a few other marines nearby doing the same thing.

"There's still no news on their movements either," Tashigi informed him, having come up behind him while he was focusing on the water.

He was pleased to see she had managed to get some free time, as he was grateful for the company at the moment.

"Yeah, at least this is almost over," Naruto responded. "I'll be happy to get back to our own ship. I'm really just not used to the crew complement that comes with a full battleship. I suppose you're probably a bit more used to how hectic it is. There were a lot of people at the base on Roguetown, right?"

"I suppose," Tashigi answered, "but I'd still wish we could get a moment to ourselves every now and then."

"Yeah, I can imagine," Naruto commiserated. "You'd probably like a break from all those lessons you've been giving."

"I guess that would be nice too," she replied. "It's been hard to get any training of my own done. Every time I try, someone comes up to me and asks for pointers."

Naruto was distracted from their conversation when he saw the Gates of Justice opening. Through them sailed another marine battleship. The sad thing was, another ship showing up was probably the most exciting thing that had happened all week.

Apparently he wasn't the only one with too much free time as quite a crowd was gathering to watch. The clamor even drew Kiba out of hiding. As it pulled closer to the dock, Naruto recognized Vice Admiral Momonga, the man he'd met back at Enies Lobby. Was there going to be a change of command he hadn't been made aware of? Kiba's eyes, however, had been drawn to an entirely different figure.

"Check out that babe," he said appreciatively, pointing to a woman that was standing next to the Vice Admiral.

The woman he was pointing at was very tall. She probably stood a few inches taller than Naruto did. He had to agree with Kiba that the woman with the long, silky black hair made a very striking figure. Striking enough that Naruto's brain took a moment to catch up and recognize just who the vast majority of the assembled marines were staring at. Tashigi, however, was much more on the ball.

"That 'babe' is Boa Hancock," she told him dryly. "Although I don't know what she's doing here. She's supposed to be in Marineford already."

"Maybe they wanted to bring one of the Shichibukai to bulk our defenses up a bit here," Kiba suggested.

"Whitebeard doesn't know when we're moving Ace," Tashigi pointed out. "If he were going to attack here, he probably would have done so already. So it's very odd that they would be doing this now."

"Whatever the reason is, I'm not complaining," Kiba replied.

To the disappointment of a great many marines, she didn't remain in view for long before being escorted into the complex. After that, the excitement quickly died down. They'd also learned from the other ship that Hancock had insisted on visiting Ace prior to traveling to Marineford.

There was another brief flurry of activity when she appeared on the deck again, but almost as soon as she and the vice admiral had arrived, they disappeared into the ship and sailed off through the Gate of Justice. Naruto wasn't expecting much excitement for the rest of the day.

As such, it came as a surprise when another marine pointed out to him that the guards at the entrance to Impel Down seemed quite agitated. Soon the portcullis lifted and a young, female marine was escorted outside. In addition, all but two of the guards that had been standing outside the gate ran inside.

As the portcullis slammed shut behind her, the young woman walked hesitantly out onto the dock, looking uncertain about what to do. The commotion had drawn even Commodore Tsume's attention, who motioned the young woman over, an enlisted marine judging from her uniform.

"This is our lucky day; another black haired beauty has arrived," Kiba announced from next to him, having found his way back on deck for this event.

Tashigi wasn't there to berate him this time, having gone off somewhere else on the ship, most likely another lesson. Once again, Naruto had to agree with his assessment. While her figure couldn't compare to the downright stunning Pirate Empress, she was curvy enough.

Looking to be only a couple of years or so older than he was, her face still had that youthful look he would typically describe as cute. One thing she had going for her over Hancock was that she was a few inches shorter, rather than taller than he was. He found it disconcerting to have to look up to a woman.

"Seaman Haku, reporting for duty," the woman announced, saluting Tsume as soon as she was standing on deck.

"Never mind that," Tsume said impatiently. "Just tell me what's going on in there."

"I don't know, ma'am," Haku replied.

"What were you doing in there in the first place?" Tsume queried, clearly annoyed at the marine's lack of information.

"I was recently on a ship that was delivering a prisoner to Impel Down," she answered. "I was injured when he made one last attempt to escape before being locked up. As their medical facilities were better then our own, I was left here for treatment until I recovered."

"That was quite an exit for such a simple story," Tsume noted.

"I wasn't supposed to be released for another couple of days," Haku explained, "but today two guards rushed in and told me I had to leave immediately. They didn't explain anything, just let me dress quickly and then rushed me out."

"So they don't even have the courtesy to let us know what's going on?" she exclaimed. "I suppose you can stay with us for now. As for me, I'm going to find out what they know."

She quickly marched down the ramp and over to the two remaining guards. Naruto could tell even from this distance that she was getting quite worked up, and the two men she was speaking with actually started to cower away from her as if preparing to fend off a blow. It didn't, however, come to that as Tsume eventually turned around and stalked back to the ship.

"There's something going on in there but they refuse to say what it is," she complained loudly as soon as she'd returned to the ship. "They insist that they can handle it themselves and don't need our help. They don't even care that if anything happens to Ace, our necks will be on the line as much as theirs."

It couldn't possibly be that serious, could it? It's not as if Whitebeard could have gotten his men into the compound without any of them noticing. Still, Naruto wanted to know what was happening for curiosity's sake if nothing else. Besides that, if there was any risk of them failing their mission, they really should do something about it.

"I think I know a way we can find out what's happening inside," Naruto told Tsume.

"I'm listening," she replied eagerly.

"I should be able to create a clone inside the building," Naruto informed her. "It can gather some intelligence, then dispel itself so I'll know what it learned."

"You can do that right through a wall?" Tsume asked him curiously.

"If I'm close enough," he answered. "I think I can manage it from over by the portcullis."

"You probably don't want to appear just inside the main gate," Haku suggested. "There were guards stationed on the other side as well. They would probably find it more than a little suspicious to see this clone of your appear out of thin air."

"Going anywhere else might be pushing my limits a bit, but I'll see what I can do," Naruto replied.

"I suppose it's worth a try," Tsume agreed. "Okay, go see what you can do."

Giving a quick salute, Naruto walked down the ramp and hurried over toward the guards. The two of them moved to block his path despite the fact that there was a heavy iron gate there to prevent his advance.

"We already told you, we can handle this ourselves," one of them declared, looking much more confident than when he'd been facing Tsume just a couple of minutes ago.

"I'm just here to relay a message," Naruto said soothingly, hoping to calm them down so he could get as close as possible.

His tactic seemed to work as both men relaxed and he was able to get quite close to the gate.

"The commodore just wants you to know that if you change your mind, we'll be happy to provide any support you need," he said, doing his best not to give away his true intentions.

"You can tell her that no matter how many times she asks we still aren't going to accept her offer," he told Naruto firmly.

Deciding to press his luck, Naruto walked the remaining few feet and pressed right up against the metal structure, peering through it.

"That's quite an impressive building," he said, trying to make it sound like an offhand comment.

"That's quite enough," the guard on his right barked out sharply. "We don't need you snooping around here."

"I'm going, I'm going," Naruto replied, having already done what he'd come to do.

As he walked off, he realized that his headache was gone. When exactly had that happened?

* * *

As he popped into existence, the clone of Naruto found himself dropping a good ten feet to the ground. Thankfully, no one was around to see it. He'd deliberately been summoned below the first floor, hoping he'd appear in a deserted area as he'd just done. Although he had underestimated just how high the ceiling would be.

The drop was of no concern to him, however. The thing that was a worry was that his headache now seemed to extend even to his clones. He was going to have to reconsider his decision to avoid a doctor.

In better news, he'd had the foresight to put himself in the uniform of an Impel Down guard, and looking it over, he didn't notice anything off about it. A change of clothes was the limit of his disguise, however.

No one should recognize him here, and transforming his clone into one of the guards he'd seen would probably have be more likely to get him caught. It would also make it harder to fight if something really was going on down here.

Now to look around and see what he could discover. He picked a random direction and started running down a hall. Other then the cells full of prisoners he was passing, the place looked surprisingly deserted. But that didn't give him much in the way of hints.

What he needed was some sort of clue. Something like that gaping hole in the floor he'd just spotted in front of him. Clearly having no better leads than that, Naruto dropped down, landing on a pile of sand of all things. In fact, there was quite a bit of sand around him. There was also a very large net nearby that was torn apart.

It was clear something had been going on recently. Looking around, however, he still didn't know which way to head from here. For all he knew, whoever was causing the disturbance could have been going up through the hole he'd just dropped down, so he might be going in the wrong direction.

That was when Naruto heard what sounded like an explosion from up on a nearby wall. It seemed he'd picked up the trail again. Running over to the wall, he leaped up to the top. Looking around he found himself standing on a large ring around a pit that was spewing out huge quantities of smoke.

In addition, for the second time since he'd entered, he found a section of the floor that had been obliterated. Running to the location of the damage he looked down, but couldn't see what was at the bottom with the all the smoke billowing up. Well, it wasn't like he was in any real danger, so he may as well check it out.

Leaping off the edge, he let himself plummet through the smoke. As he made his way down, he discovered that he was heading straight for a giant pot of boiling red liquid. Doubting his clone body could handle that, he used a quick application of Geppou to angle toward a nearby walkway, finding himself landing next to four figures.

"Gah! What are you doing here!" yelled a man whose large red nose meant he could only be Buggy the Clown.

Naruto, however, was focused more on the only one of the four who wasn't dressed in prison garb, Monkey D. Luffy. He didn't recognize the man who actually had his hair styled into the shape of the number 3 or the one standing on one leg and spinning in circles, but it looked as if Luffy had found quite a collection of men of dubious sanity.

"He's the dangerous one!" Buggy called out pointing at Luffy. "You should go after him, not me."

"I'd love to, but I'm only a clone," Naruto replied. "I wouldn't stand a chance against him."

He now knew what the source of the disturbance was, so he could just dispel himself and report. Perhaps that might be a bit hasty, however. There was a chance he could help quell this mini uprising. It was true he couldn't take out Luffy like this, but he could still contribute if someone else confronted him.

"Is that so?" Buggy replied, breaking into a malicious grin. "That means I have an opportunity for some revenge."

Unsurprisingly, he leaped at Naruto intent on taking him out. In response, Naruto casually knocked him right back the way he came with a quick jab to his face.

"I said I wouldn't stand a chance against Luffy. I'm still more than capable of taking you out," he said smugly.

"Do you know this guard?" the man with the ridiculous hair asked Buggy, looking quite wary of him.

"He's not a guard," Luffy told them. "He's a pirate like us. His name is Naruto, and he's a friend of mine. Naruto this is Buggy, Bon-chan, and San."

"That's Mr. 3!" he corrected angrily.

"Any friend of Luffy's is a friend of mine," Bon exclaimed.

Naruto couldn't believe Luffy was still going on about the pirate thing, but he was going to put a stop to it right now.

"Luffy," he began solemnly, "I don't know how you got that idea in your head, but I want you to listen very carefully. I am not a pirate."

"Ah," Luffy replied in comprehension. "I must look really dumb right now."

It looked like he'd finally gotten through to him. Even Luffy wasn't dense enough to misunderstand when you explain it outright.

"You're in disguise, so I shouldn't break your cover," Luffy continued at a near whisper.

Naruto felt like pounding his head against something right about now.

"Is he this frustrating to you too?" he asked the other prisoners.

"All the time!" Buggy and Mr. 3 cried out in unison.

Oh well, if he'd taken a moment to calm down, he'd have realized that it was better to let his misconception stand for the moment. Luffy didn't seem intent on fighting him, which would let him wait for an opportunity to do something constructive. Maybe he could get a little more information as well.

"I'm surprised to see you here, Luffy," he told the pirate captain, "I hadn't heard anything about you being captured."

"I wasn't captured," Luffy informed him. "I snuck in myself."

He snuck in himself? If it had been anyone else, he wouldn't have believed him even with the evidence in his favor. It was odd that he would be the only one not wearing prison clothes or that he'd be captured without it making the news.

Not to mention that they seemed to be going deeper into the prison instead of trying to escape. Still, the idea that any pirate would willfully come here was so ridiculous that Luffy was the only one he could think of that he would consider capable of doing so.

"Why would you want to sneak into Impel Down?" Naruto questioned him.

"I'm here to rescue Ace," Luffy announced. "He's my brother."

"Your brother?" Naruto exclaimed in surprise.

Did that mean that Ace was Dragon's son as well?

"Yeah, you should help me rescue him," Luffy suggested excitedly. "If we work together, there's no way we can fail."

"I'm not going to help you rescue Ace," Naruto fired back sharply.

There he was saying things that weren't necessary again, but Luffy had a way of keeping him off balance. He was actually trying something as suicidal as breaking into Impel Down to rescue his brother?

That degree of loyalty was something Naruto suspected very few marines would live up to. It certainly wasn't something he expected to see in a pirate. It proved that Nojiko was right about one thing. Luffy was no ordinary pirate.

"Don't be stingy," Luffy complained. "Ace doesn't even want to the Pirate King, so it won't hurt you at all if he escapes."

"Ah, it's so hot here I just can't stand it!" Bon complained. "And I'm famished. We should head for the kitchen."

It finally clicked for Naruto who this 'Bon-chan' was. He must be that Bon Kurei pirate. The one who could change shapes that Shino had mistaken him for after the whole Blackbeard incident. Seeing the man in person, Naruto suddenly wondered if he should have been more insulted by the mistake. Still, now that he pointed it out, Naruto was glad his clones didn't feel temperature as this place really did look torturously hot.

"Food?" Luffy asked excited. "If I have a good meal I'll be a hundred times as strong!"

"The kitchen should be this way," Bon Kurei told him, running off down the walkway, Luffy following right behind him.

He noticed that Buggy and Mr. 3 looked to be taking the opportunity to sneak off in the other direction, but Naruto decided he'd have to let them go for now. It was important to stick with the biggest threat. Up ahead a guard spotted the approaching pirates and bravely confronted them. Bravely, but foolishly as well. Bon Kurei, kicked him into a nearby wall without even slowing his progress.

Naruto quickly went over to check on the fallen man. He wasn't exactly trained in this, but it looked like the guard would be okay. Although he had to jerk his hand back quickly when he almost touched a pair of seastone handcuffs that were dangling from the man's belt. That would have been a quick way to dispel himself.

"Magellan!" he heard Bon Kurei yell from around corner in the direction they'd continued running.

Magellan was supposed to be the warden of Impel Down. Hopefully he would be strong enough to deal with Luffy. Naruto peaked around the corner to get a look and found the warden's appearance to be quite astonishing. He looked like a demon out of storybook, right down to the bat wings and horns on his head.

In addition, Kuma had been the only man he'd ever seen who could rival him in height. It was hard to get a good estimate for someone that tall, but Naruto would resign his commission if he wasn't at least 15 feet.

"Luffy, you can't fight him!" Bon Kurei ordered him. "His entire body is poison. If you hit him you'll only be hurting yourself."

"He's right," Magellan announced. "I'm putting a stop to you right here."

"If you're going to stand between me and Ace, then I'll gladly give up my hands to stop you," Luffy announced, before quickly getting that red glow again. "Gomu Gomu no Jet Bazooka!"

Both his fists shot out in a blur impacting heavily against Magellan's stomach and causing him to double over. Luffy's hands came back covered in some kind of purple colored gel that was dripping from them. The poison seemed to already be putting him in a great deal of pain.

"I'm sorry, Luffy," Bon Kurei cried out, tears streaming from his face as he abandoned his companion to run in the other direction.

Naruto couldn't believe Luffy had just done that. It had been so ... it had been the most ... Naruto was so shocked he wasn't sure just what it had been. It was, however, clear that Luffy wasn't about to stop until he was dead. Such determination seemed kind of pointless to Naruto. His death wouldn't do anyone any good.

Perhaps there was a way Naruto could keep it from going quite that far. He had no real desire to see Luffy dead, and he was already getting an idea of how he might prevent that. Events almost seemed to be playing into his hands as well as Luffy jumped back to avoid a stream of poison, passing the corner Naruto was crouched behind and coming to a stop just a few feet from him.

"Luffy," he whispered, motioning him over. "Hearing him, Luffy hurried over behind the corner to see what he wanted."

"Don't think you can run away," he heard Magellan say calmly.

"I have a plan," Naruto whispered quickly. "Put on these seastone handcuffs here and I can pretend to capture you. That should let us get away from the warden."

There was a moment of silence and Naruto realized his plan wasn't going to work. A devil fruit user like Luffy wasn't going to trust him enough to put on a pair of seastone handcuffs. He'd be giving away his only chance to defend himself."

"That's a great idea!" Luffy whispered back excitedly. "You can take me right to Ace's cell and no one will stop you with your disguise."

His eagerness to go along with this struck Naruto harshly. It was almost like he was the villain for taking advantage of the boy's trust to trick him like this.

"Ah, I have to hurry," Luffy exclaimed, quickly grabbing the handcuffs and locking them around his wrists.

He finished just in time, as Magellan rounded the corner. Naruto quickly stood at attention, grabbing Luffy with one arm and saluting with the other.

"Thanks to your poison, Luffy was left weak and nearly defenseless," he announced. "Enough so that I was able to force these handcuffs on him when he attempted to run."

Luffy's chose that moment to make his legs almost give out on him as he feigned weakness. At least he hoped it was just an act. Naruto wasn't familiar with how bad that poison was.

"Good work," Magellan told him after taking in the scene. "Bring him down to Level 5 and lock him up. He may even yet survive my poison. Find me later and I'll make sure you receive a commendation for this. For now, I need to ensure the escaped prisoners are taken care of."

As Magellan walked off, he stood a bit in shock at what he had just accomplished. After all this time, he'd actually caught Monkey D. Luffy. His real body was going to be in for quite a surprise when it received his memories.

* * *

Bonney was pacing around the cell she had to herself, doing her best to stay active and generate as much heat as she could. This had been the most miserable week of her life. Was fighting off frostbite really all she had left to look forward to for?

It almost made her wonder if it was even worth going on. No, she couldn't think like that. She wasn't so weak willed as to give up after just a week in here. She just needed to keep moving and try to think of something other than the cold.

That proved easier than she'd anticipated as she heard the creak of someone trudging through the snow. She didn't think it was time for them to deliver the food yet. Looking toward the sound she saw a guard escorting a prisoner, one who wasn't in prison clothes for some reason.

As they moved closer she was able to see that the prisoner was none other than Monkey D. Luffy. So the 300 million beli bounty had been captured as well? As surprising as that revelation was, it passed completely out of her mind when she got a good look at the guard.

"What are you doing here?" she yelled out to the man who was responsible for her incarceration. "Does being a prison guard pay so poorly that you have to work part time as a bounty hunter?"

"Bonney?" the blond man asked. "I didn't expect to run into you here."

"Were you expecting they'd send me on a tropical vacation instead?" she snapped at him.

"Well, I've brought you some company," he told her mockingly. "Now you can't say I never did anything for you."

As he went to unlock her cage, Bonney stood a short distance from the door, trying not to make it too obvious that she was planning to attack him the moment the cell was opened. Hearing the click of the lock, she was already in motion, but found herself colliding with Luffy as he was quickly tossed through the crack in the door.

The collision wasn't as painful as she'd expected, his body seeming to give way more than it should, but it still knocked her back. By the time she'd recovered, the door had already been slammed shut and locked again.

"You're really that terrified of a handcuffed woman?" Bonney taunted, hoping to get another chance to escape the cell. "Too scared to do anything but cower safely behind those bars?"

The man ignored her, however, and continued to walk away from them.

"You weren't much help there," she complained to Luffy. "If you'd fought back we might have been able to overpower him and get away."

"Oh, Naruto isn't really a guard," Luffy informed her. "He's a pirate like us, and he's helping me rescue Ace."

There was a lot to digest from that simple statement. The first was the details on the man who'd captured her. The fact that this 'Naruto' was a pirate was unexpected. Although with another pirate, there was no way to tell why he'd gone after her and turned her in to the marines. For all she knew, he didn't like the way she did her hair.

The second fact was that Ace, who she assumed was Fire Fist Ace, was in Impel Down somewhere. That was quite a big catch there, but the marines better hope they were prepared for Whitebeard's response. The most important piece of news, however, was that there was an escape attempt going on. She wasn't expecting such a lucky break today. She just needed to get in on it now.

"I could help you rescue Ace," she offered. "Besides you owe me. I saved Zoro's life. Probably your life too for that matter."

"When did you do that?" he asked her.

"Back on the Sabaody Archipelago," she answered. "That idiot tried to attack one of the tenryuubito. Your whole crew is lucky I stopped him."

"Oh yeah," Luffy replied. "Those guys were jerks, but I beat one of them up pretty good. Although Admiral Kizaru almost got us because of that."

Great, that idiot swordsman's captain was just as dumb as he was, and she was putting her faith in him to get her out of here? Still, it's not like she could afford to be picky about who rescued her.

"So, what's your plan to get out of here?" she asked him.

"I don't know," he answered, not sounding very concerned by that fact. "Naruto didn't tell me. I thought he was just going to let me go down here."

Bonney could not believe what she was hearing.

"You mean to tell me that you just let him handcuff you and lock you in a cell without even knowing what his plan was?" she asked in complete disbelief. "How do you know he didn't just betray you?"

"Naruto wouldn't do that to me," he insisted confidently.

Luffy seemed to be working hard to dash the very hope he'd just inspired in her. She couldn't give up yet, though. Just because Luffy could have been easily duped didn't mean he necessarily had. The plan could still be real. Maybe Naruto worked for Whitebeard. One thing was for certain, Luffy had better hope he was right about this, or she would make his stay as miserable as possible for getting her hopes up like that.

* * *

With Luffy taken care of, Naruto knew he should just dispel himself. The warden looked more than capable of handling the prisoners who were still at large on Level 4. Besides, everyone back on the ship was probably wondering what was taking him so long.

It was just that for some reason he had an overwhelming urge to see Ace for himself. He wasn't sure why, as he'd see him soon enough when he was transferred to the ship. Still, it was like there was a voice in his head insisting he had to see Ace before then.

As odd as this whole experience was, he supposed it would make for an interesting experience. If he went to Magellan, as the warden had suggested, maybe he could ask to be allowed to help escort the prisoner. Wouldn't they all be surprised if he showed up with the guards escorting Ace? Yeah, that was exactly what he'd do.

* * *

Bonney watched Luffy pace anxiously back and forth in front of their cell door. She wanted to get out of here just as much as he did, but he was still beginning to get on her nerves.

"What's taking Naruto?" Luffy complained for about the dozenth time. "Doesn't he know I'm in a hurry?"

"Calm down," Bonney told him. "Either he'll come or he won't, but whichever it is, you can't do anything about it."

"I can't help it if I don't like waiting," Luffy said sullenly.

"While I don't like it when you whine about it," she snapped back.

"Hey, someone's coming," he called out excitedly.

Instantly Bonney was right next to him looking for herself. There really was someone coming, a man who for some insane reason was walking around on Level 5 shirtless.

"Bon-chan!" Luffy cried out excitedly. "Over here!"

"Luffy!" the man called back. "You're still okay. I was afraid the poison would get you before I could give you the antidote."

"Thanks!" Luffy answered, grabbing the pill this 'Bon-chan' held out and swallowing it. "I have been feeling really weak since I got the poison on me. Wiping it off didn't seem to help either."

Wait, all that pacing around and complaining he'd been doing and he'd been poisoned the whole time? It must have been a pretty weak poison, as she hadn't noticed any sign of it. She quickly brushed aside that line of thought, though; it wasn't important right now.

"You do have the keys, right?" she asked hopefully.

"Right here," he answered proudly, holding up a ring of them.

"I told you we could count on him," Luffy told her cheerfully. "Anyway, Bon-chan, this is Bonney. She's going to help us rescue Ace."

"I'll have you two out of there in no time," he said, searching for the correct key for the door. "Then we can look for Ace and Ivan-sama."

Her spirits soared as soon as the cell unlocked. Bonney realized they were far from having escaped, but she wasn't even going to consider failure. There were too many people she needed revenge on to stay in here.

* * *

Naruto followed along behind Magellan as they continued their descent down to Level 6. He hadn't even known there was a Level 6, but thankfully, he'd managed to avoid blowing his cover and the warden had agreed to his request. They walked into the room, allowing him his first look at Fire Fist Ace. The young man at the center of all these events was currently chained to the wall, looking quite pitiful really.

"It's time," Magellan told him simply.

"Hey blondie," a woman's voice called out from one of the cells. "Are you Naruto?"

Naruto peered in the direction of the voice, but it came from a particularly dark cell. Given that his eyes hadn't adjusted to the dim lighting down on Level 6, he couldn't make out more than a vague outline of the speaker.

"Yeah," he replied, "but how do you know that?"

He'd already met Bonney on level 5, and he couldn't think of any other women he might know that would be in Impel Down. Especially not with a voice he didn't recognize.

"You look a lot like your father, so I just thought it might be you," she answered.

"You knew my father?" he asked curiously.

"I should," she told him letting out a small chuckle. "He is the one who put me in here."

Ah, Naruto should have guessed that. He'd wager she wasn't the only person in this room his father had captured. He remembered, however, that he wasn't alone when Magellan moved over to stand behind him, blocking much of what little light reached over here.

"I'm nearly certain it was Admiral Minato who captured the leader of the Burning Skull Pirates," he said suspiciously. "I believe I would have heard about it if his son joined my guards. What are you doing here?"

Naruto really didn't want to have to explain this, and thankfully, he had an easy out.

"I guess it's time for me to make my exit then," he announced, before preparing to dismiss himself.

For a moment, he thought he felt an odd spinning sensation, but it was only for a split second before he vanished in a puff of smoke.

* * *

Orochimaru slowly struggled his way back to consciousness. He didn't know how long he'd been away from his body, as it took him a while to piece his mind back together. His consciousness had been all but shattered when Minato's brat had destroyed that fake swordswoman he'd been inhabiting.

All the time he'd spent in the back of Naruto's mind recovering his sense of self was a blur until just recently. Judging by how weak his body felt, it must have been a fairly long time indeed. None of his tests had ever left him in such a weakened state. He wasn't even sure how much longer his body would have lasted.

It was no small miracle he'd managed to make his way to his body so soon, even with his subtle prodding at the boy's mind. He'd been worried he wouldn't able to return to his own body even when he had. After all, he'd found himself incapable of switching to anyone else, nor could he take direct control As such, it was completely outside of his realm of experience.

Forcing open his eyes, he saw was sharing a cell with another prisoner. The fellow was probably about a foot taller than him and weighed at least twice as much. Currently, he was spending his time devouring a rather meager meal. The cup sitting on the floor next to him, however, was even more enticing.

"Water," he managed to call out, despite the complete lack of moisture anywhere in his mouth.

"You're actually awake?" the man asked in surprise. "Well, that waters mine and you just missed the day's meal. Anyway, you survived this long without any, what's one more day?"

Orochimaru felt a flash of rage at his response. Ignoring the current state of his body, he forced his protesting muscles to act. Springing to his feet, he smashed his fists into the man's nose, feeling a satisfying crunch.

Then he leaped over his head, twisted around and wrapped his arms around the brute. Making use of the seastone manacles that bound his hands together, he pressed them firmly against his foe's neck and twisted hard, hearing the snap of his neck quite clearly.

As the corpse fell to the ground, Orochimaru was pleased to see he hadn't knocked over the cup. Although some of the blood from the nose he'd broken had fallen into the water. Smiling Orochimaru picked up the cup and began to slowly drink it. The blood only made it all the more refreshing.

* * *

Naruto was surprised when the clone's memories returned to him. Considering it had been nearly a day since he'd created it, Naruto had long since assumed he'd just tried to create his clone too far away and nothing had happened. He hadn't made a second attempt as they'd soon found out that Luffy had broken into Impel Down somehow, reducing the demand for intelligence on the situation.

Despite that, it was probably best not to reveal the fact that his clone had been gallivanting off on its own rather than letting them know what was going on. Although when Magellan walked out of Impel Down with Ace a short while later, he realized he probably should have hidden himself somewhere if he didn't want anyone else to find out.

The warden's eyes were already locked on him, making it clear that it was too late to do so now. Magellan slowly made his way to their ship, leading the prisoner up the ramp. He addressed Naruto almost as soon as he was on board.

"I should have known the marines wouldn't be content to sit around and do nothing," he told him disapprovingly.

To his relief, the man looked willing to let the matter drop at that, finishing the hand off of the prisoner. As soon as he was secured in the brig, the ship, and much of the task force set sail through the Gates of Justice and back toward Marineford. Today was the day of the execution. But before that, there was a war to fight.

* * *

Luffy had been frustrated beyond belief when he'd finally made it down to Level 6 with the help of Ivan and his men, only to find Ace was already gone. For a while, it had even looked like they would be trapped there.

Now, however, things were starting to look up. Crocodile was going to get them out of here, and they'd also got this really strong looking fishman to help them. He was going to get out of here and rescue Ace no matter what it took.

"That's an impressive force you've arrayed there boy," a new voice praised him. "Few can claim they've had the aid of two of the Shichibukai. Why be satisfied with that, however, when you can have three of them on your side?"

"Two?" Luffy asked in confusion. "Who's the second one?"

"Don't listen to that snake," a woman called out from another cell. "He'll just stab you in the back the first opportunity he gets. Take me instead."

"Why should they trust you any more than me?" the man asked sharply. "We're both pirates."

The man was right; Luffy didn't know which of them to believe.

"What do you think, Ivan?" Luffy asked.

"I think we've wasted enough time already and should leave them both behind," Ivan answered.

"If you ask me, we should take all the help we can get," Bonney cut in.

"It's really not my goal to release everyone on Level 6," Ivan argued. "Most of them are here for a good reason."

"Jinbei, I'm begging you," the woman pressed on. "Tell them I'll keep my word. You know me well enough to know that's true. I'll help you escape and I'll even owe the boy a favor."

"Begging?" Jinbei asked in surprise. "That isn't like you. Although, now that I think about it, you've been quite agitated since that Naruto boy was in here earlier."

"Naruto was here?" Luffy asked. "He was helping me rescue Ace. He must have come down here to try to free him."

"I don't know what he had planned, but someone blew his cover before he could try anything," Jinbei said accusingly.

"So, he's a pirate huh?" the woman asked, letting out a small chuckle. "I'd have loved to see the look on his father's face when he made that career choice."

"And now you want out so you can take revenge on him for his father's actions?" Jinbei speculated, clearly disapproving of the thought.

"If you're planning to hurt Naruto then I'm not letting you out of there," Luffy vowed.

"Hurt him? Get revenge? Why would I want to do that to my own son?" the red haired woman asked.

* * *

**AN**

Wow, another chapter that just ended up being really long somehow. Lots of stuff happening in this one too. Although I think the piece that will excite people the most was the reveal of Kushina at the end. I've been wanting to write that scene for a long time as I was deliberately trying to trick people into thinking it was Tsunade in there. As such, I hope a lot of people fell for it.

I did, however, leave a couple of clues along the way as to her true identity. To start with, why had Nawaki and Kurenai been so forgiving of the person who had sent their original captain to Impel Down? Why had they been so insistent that Tenten would regret it if she did anything to him? And right before the reveal, how would the woman in the cell have known Naruto's name when Minato's closest friends in the Marines hadn't even known he'd had a son?

Just to let you know, the next chapter may take a little longer to write. I know what I want to happen for the big picture, but I still don't have a clue how I'm going to manage all the details of the Whitebeard War. There's just so many people involved, so it's going to be a mess working out how to deal with them all.

Anyway, I'd love to hear how many of you fell for my red herring, and how many correctly figured out it was Kushina in the cell before I revealed it. Don't feel you need to limit your reviews to that, however. Lots of other events took place in this chapter, and I'd be more than happy to hear your opinions on any of them.


	18. Chapter 18

Bonney was beginning to feel a bit of optimism about their chances of escape. Even leaving Orochimaru in his cell, they still had a group that would cause many battle hardened marine officers to turn and flee just at hearing their names. So it was little surprise how swiftly they were advancing upward toward the entrance of Impel Down.

Still, her confidence wouldn't really take off as long as Magellan was pursuing them. She'd considered using her power on him, but she had no desire to make herself a target. She wasn't about to risk a lethal dose of poison to help the rest of the group escape. Anyway, there were bigger names than hers here. Shouldn't one of them deal with the warden?

Next to her ran a recently released red-haired woman who, until about half an hour ago, Bonney had assumed to be long dead. Kushina looked completely calm, despite the danger they were still in. This fact bothered Bonney more than she cared to admit, and was probably the main factor in her deciding to risk provoking the woman despite her reputation.

"You know," she declared to Kushina, "I'm not exactly very happy with your son right now. He was the person who put me in here."

Kushina looked her way and Bonney was already regretting not keeping a tighter rein on her tongue. From the stories she'd heard, Kushina wasn't the type of person you wanted as an enemy. So coming right out and saying she was an enemy of her son might not be the wisest idea. She was already busy trying to think of a way out of this when the other woman spoke.

"A lovers' spat?" she asked casually.

"What?" Bonney yelled in surprise, completely forgetting her plans to calm things down. "He's the man who put me and my entire crew in this joint. Even if I am escaping now, I have no idea where my crew is. Not to mention that with Magellan hunting us, it doesn't seem likely I'll have time to look for them. Where in all of that would you come up with the idea that we might ever have been an item?"

"You do realize my late husband is the one who sent me here, right?" Kushina inquired.

"Your husband?" she asked curiously. "So Minato really was Naruto's father? It wasn't just some noble marine mumbo jumbo about raising the child of his enemy to see that he was brought up properly?"

"Yes, he was really the father," Kushina answered. "Don't worry though, I was just teasing you. I know our relationship was hardly normal. Not that I wouldn't be happy to hear Naruto had found a nice young woman. You wouldn't happen to know if that were the case, would you?"

"I don't have a clue," Bonney answered. "For all I know he's married and already given you a couple of grandchildren."

Before she'd even realized what was happening, Bonney felt her feet lifting off the ground. She found herself held there by Kushina, who had a firm grip on the neck of her prison uniform. The woman holding her in that position looked absolutely furious. She could almost imagine her hair being actual flames set there to emphasize her rage.

"Take that back!" she ordered furiously. "I am not old enough to be a grandmother! I've barely gotten used to being a mother."

Bonney briefly considered using her power in self defense, but something about the woman just intimidated her too much to risk it. Still, she couldn't believe this was what had evoked her fury, instead of the implied threat to her son. The scene had already caught the attention of the ragtag group that was escaping with them, but no one seemed eager to come to her defense.

"I'm sorry," Bonney apologized fearfully. "I didn't mean anything by it."

"No, I'm the one who should be apologizing," Kushina said, calming down and setting her back on the floor. "I've just been in here so long. It's hard to believe how much time has passed or just how much I've missed."

"Well, you're still young," Bonney told her cautiously as the two of them continued their course to the exit. "You'll have plenty of chances to make up for lost time."

"Captain Bonney!" she heard several familiar voices calling out.

Looking up she was astonished to see that her entire crew seemed to be present, standing in a larger crowd of escaped prisoners distinct from their own.

"What are you guys doing here?" she asked.

"Captain Buggy freed us," came the reply.

"How nice, looks like your men are going to escape as well," Kushina told her sweetly. "Now you have no reason to hold a grudge against Naruto, right?"

As saccharine as the woman's statement was, Bonney caught a dangerous glint to her eye that seemed to promise all manner of unpleasant things if she answered the wrong way. This was more along the lines of what she'd been expecting from Kushina when she'd first brought the topic of Naruto up. She was far from eager to forgive the person behind her incarceration, but under the gaze she was receiving, she decided this might be one vendetta it would be best to overlook.

"I guess a week of my time isn't anything to get too worked up over," she replied reluctantly, but it seemed to satisfy the other pirate captain.

Despite her words, she wasn't certain she'd be able to resist getting revenge on Naruto if the opportunity presented itself. However, there was an ample supply of people she had a bone to pick with, so there was no need to actively pursue this particular case.

* * *

Not long after they'd departed, Tashigi decided to look and see how Haku was settling in. Tashigi was well aware of how few women joined the marines. Including Haku, there were now four women on the ship, even if one of them was the commanding officer. Such a large gender imbalance wasn't always easy, so Tashigi wanted to do her part to make the young woman feel comfortable. She soon found Haku in the middle of a discussion with Commodore Tsume on the main deck.

"I'll send notice to your commanding officer that we have you aboard," she overheard Tsume telling Haku.

"No need to trouble yourself," Haku replied politely. "He was heading for Marineford. I can simply report to him when we arrive."

"Well, if you're fine with that, I won't complain about less paperwork," Tsume responded. "But I do have a couple of other things I'd like to discuss with you."

Not wanting to eavesdrop, Tashigi decided she could go elsewhere until they were done talking. However, as she began to leave she spotted someone who didn't have the same courtesy. Kiba stood around the corner obviously listening in. Not at all pleased with his behavior Tashigi marched over to confront him.

"What do you think you're doing?" she demanded of him, causing him to jump.

"Keep it down," he whispered back. "And I'm not doing anything."

"Really?" she asked dubiously, nevertheless giving him the benefit of the doubt for now by making sure she was out of sight of the commodore and lowering her voice. "It looks to me as if you're eavesdropping."

"It may look that way, but I'm not," Kiba insisted. "Well, I guess I am, sort of, but I'm not really trying to listen in. It's just a combination of wanting to talk with Haku and wanting to stay out of sight of my mother."

"And just why exactly do you want to talk to her?" she asked, suspecting she already knew the answer.

"The same reason most every guy on this ship wants to talk to her," Kiba replied, confirming her suspicions.

"Did it ever occur to you that maybe she wouldn't want you bothering her like that?" she asked in annoyance. "That's the sort of behavior that scares off most women from becoming marines."

"Like she's really going to have anything against a few simple compliments," Kiba complained.

This earned him nothing more than a glare in response. Seeing her reaction he quickly changed tactics.

"Let's look at it another way," he suggested. "Suppose some guy comes up to you, I'll pick one at random ... say ... Naruto perhaps? Now Naruto walks up to you and tells you how stunning you look and how he just can't keep his mind off you. You're really going to be offended by that?"

She couldn't help but imagine the very situation he described and quickly felt her face flushing. Refocusing her eyes on Kiba she saw him smirking and her face turned even redder thanks to her building anger. She didn't believe for a moment he'd picked Naruto's name at random.

"That has nothing to do with this," she snapped. "And if you want to embarrass yourself, then go right ahead. I won't stop you."

"Great, because it looks like my chance has come," Kiba announced, alerting Tashigi to fact that Tsume had departed.

As he walked over to where Haku now stood alone, Tashigi pressed herself against the wall, staying out of sight of the two. She realized this was a bit hypocritical after she'd just admonished Kiba for doing the same thing but quickly dismissed the thought.

"So, you're Haku right?" she heard him ask. "I'm Kiba. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Yes, it's Haku," she replied. "And it's nice to meet you too, Kiba. Is there anything I can do for you?"

"It's the other way around, really," Kiba replied. "With such an attractive woman coming on board, I couldn't help but come over, introduce myself, and offer whatever assistance you might need."

Tashigi couldn't believe he really came right out and said it like that. Ah well, she'd wait just long enough to see this blow up on him, then come to Haku's rescue.

"You really find me attractive?" Haku asked, sounding somewhat surprised.

"Come now," Kiba replied. "A girl as cute as you must have heard that from any number of guys."

"Fewer than you might think, actually," Haku responded.

She couldn't really be so naive as to not see Kiba's true intentions, could she? Tashigi might have to intervene sooner than she'd intended. Although Kiba wouldn't let her live it down if things hadn't fallen apart on him yet when she did.

"Kiba! There you are!" the commodore yelled, having just returned to the scene and spotted her son. "If you have time to stand around flirting then I can find plenty of work for you to do."

"Mom?" Kiba cried out in surprise. "And it's not like that, I was just saying hello."

Tashigi smirked from where she hid. It looked like Tsume had saved her from having to cut in.

"How many times do I have to tell you not to call me mom on duty?" Tsume snapped. "And I wasn't born yesterday; it was obvious what you were doing."

"I wasn't flirting, honest," Kiba swore. "Tell her, Haku."

"I'm sorry Kiba," she told him. "But it did seem like flirting to me."

"That's all I needed to hear," Tsume announced.

"It was completely harmless, though," Haku added in his defense.

Tashigi risked peaking around the corner to see that Haku's words were too little too late as Tsume was already dragging Kiba off by his ear. Now that the commodore had taken care of that problem so nicely, maybe Tashigi could finally get around to greeting Haku herself.

* * *

Luffy was doing his best to protect their stolen ship from the attacks of the pursuing marines, but there were simply too many cannonballs for him to deflect them all. He didn't let this discourage him, however. If they sunk this ship, he'd steal another and another until there were no ships left to pursue them. He wasn't going to let them stop him from rescuing Ace.

"You seem to be in a bit of a bind here," Naruto's mother called out to him from where she stood, leaning casually against one of the masts.

"Don't worry, we'll get through this," Luffy promised her.

"That might be a little easier if you would actually help," Jinbei declared to the woman, walking over to where she stood.

"Well, I suppose I do owe Luffy here a favor," she agreed. "What do you say? I'll take care of the ships and then we call it even?"

If she could really take care of all of them, that sounded like a great deal to Luffy. He was just about to accept when Jinbei cut her off.

"So that's what you've been up to," he declared. "I thought it was odd you weren't doing anything during the escape. You've been hoping we'd get in trouble so you could use it as an excuse to get out of your obligation. Well I'll tell you right now that helping yourself escape doesn't count as fulfilling your favor."

What was Jinbei doing? Now wasn't the time to be worrying about favors. If she could help him rescue Ace, then he didn't care what she asked in return.

"Fine," she conceded, cutting Luffy off from his thoughts, "I guess I shouldn't have expected it to be that easy."

Luffy looked on in interest as she walked over to the edge of the ship, barely even noticing as another cannonball bounced off him and into the water. He could hardly wait to see what she was going to do. But after several seconds of her standing there doing nothing he began to grow impatient.

"What are you waiting for?" he demanded to know.

"Just watch the ships," Jinbei directed him.

Luffy did just that, but didn't see anything that caught his attention. He was about to complain again when the ships all appeared to start drifting to the side. He watched curiously as they picked up speed along their sideways motion. He was soon able to see they were being swept along in a strong current, one that quickly grew into a giant whirlpool.

All of the marine vessels were now fully trapped by watery currents and were being dragged closer and closer to the center. He watched as one after another they capsized. By the time the water returned to its calm state, not one of the pursuing ships remained upright. It had worked!

"And that is why she's called Uzumaki Kushina," Jinbei declared solemnly.

"No, I'm called Uzumaki Kushina because it's my name," she corrected him.

"You can't expect me to believe that was already your name and you just got a matching power by coincidence," Jinbei replied dubiously.

"Coincidence nothing," she fired back. "Do you know how much work went into finding that particular devil fruit?"

"So you went searching all over the world for a devil fruit that would go with your name?" Luffy asked her?

"Yeah, you got a problem with that?" she asked dangerously.

"That is _so_ cool!" Luffy cried out in appreciation.

"I think I'm really starting to like you, kid," Kushina told him with a smile.

Naruto's mother was awesome. He just wished they'd been able to find Naruto and bring him with. Still, Naruto got inside Impel Down on his own, and he was sure that he had his own way out. For now, it was Ace he needed to focus on rescuing.

* * *

Naruto sat staring at the piece of paper in front him, his face as blank as the yet untouched surface. He'd promised to write Sakura from time to time, and the trip back to Marineford seemed as good as any. So he'd come to this small study to do just that. Yet he found himself unable to think of what to write. In frustration he grabbed the pen and began furiously scribbling out a missive.

Dear Sakura,

I was recently put on trail for treason and ended up

in Impel Down. But now they're making me fight

in a war against the strongest pirate in the world.

I'll write to you again if I survive.

Sincerely,

Naruto

Sending that would teach her to think twice about demanding he write to her. Chuckling to himself he shoved the joke letter to the side and grabbed another piece of paper. Something about having got that out of his system seemed to have been just what he needed to get over his block, and he found himself quickly writing out a new letter.

In it, he described some of his recent achievements. His capture of Bonney and her crew. How he guarded Impel Down and transported Ace to the execution. Stuff like that. He finished off with a few more personal notes, and signed the letter. Reading it over once more, he was pleased with how it turned out.

Getting up, he searched around the room until he found an envelope, then quickly grabbed the letter and stuffed it inside. Taking the freshly sealed missive, he walked outside onto the deck. There he found Tsume, already surrounded by Kiba, Akamaru, and Tashigi.

"Ah, Naruto, I was just looking for you," she declared. "I want to discuss your assignment for the coming battle."

"Of course," Naruto replied, hurrying over to join them.

Unfolding a piece of cloth she held in her hands, she pressed it up against the mast she stood next to, revealing it to be a map of Marineford. The entire island had been divided up into labeled grids. Examining it quickly, she pointed her finger at a section marked as E9.

"This is where you'll be stationed," she announced. "You're to defend that section and not move unless you receive new orders stating otherwise."

Looking over the map more closely, Naruto was disappointed by what he saw.

"That's nowhere near anything!" Kiba complained, obviously no more pleased with this fact than he was.

"With all due respect, commodore," Tashigi added. "I believe we're skilled enough that we could be put to better use elsewhere."

"Your skills aren't in doubt here," Tsume told them. "But there's no shortage of powerful marines in Marineford right now. However, no matter how skilled they are, a lot of people are going to die here today. You three are still young and have the potential to grow much stronger. So it'd be foolish of me as a commanding officer to risk getting you killed now by putting you on the front line."

He heard Kiba muttering what sounded like something about women and getting emotional, but it hard to make out what he was saying. That didn't stop his mother from shooting him a nasty look.

"One more word out of you and your assignment will be to guard the inside of a cell," Tsume snapped, silencing her son immediately.

Naruto was still trying to work out some argument of his own to change her mind, but as if sensing his thoughts she turned her glare on him.

"Do you have something to add?" she asked sharply.

Seeing her look she sent his way convinced Naruto that debating the issue would be pointless. So it was completely a logical decision to give up on doing so, not because he was intimidated by Tsume.

"No, I'm completely fine with our orders, ma'am" he replied quickly, adding a salute for good measure.

Okay, maybe he was just a little bit intimidated.

"Good, then I want you to all get to your assigned posts," she ordered. "The attack could come at any time."

Not giving them any further chance to argue, she walked off. After she was gone, Kiba let out a loud sigh.

"I guess we should get going," he suggested. "On the bright side, maybe we can catch a nap while everyone else is getting all the glory."

"It's not about glory," Tashigi berated him. "And no matter where we're stationed, we should stay alert. We never know what might happen."

"I'm just kidding," Kiba complained. "You need to get yourself a sense of humor. No guy is going to want to go out with a girl who can't take a joke."

"I have a perfectly fine sense of humor," she snapped at him. "I just know when it's appropriate to utilize it."

"Maybe you should tell some jokes that are actually funny before you complain," Naruto quipped. "Anyway, I want to deliver this letter quickly if you two don't mind."

"It's not like it really matters if we get to our post on time," Kiba replied.

"Actually, I know a place right along the way that we can take it," Tashigi offered. "It won't delay us more than a minute or two."

"Great," Naruto exclaimed. "Lead on."

Tashigi was true to her word, as she led him into a small building where he was able to mail his letter with minimal effort. After that they continued on toward their post. They were nearly there when he heard someone calling out from behind them.

"Captain Namikaze!" the voice called out, revealing itself to belong to Haku when he turned around.

She quickly caught up to him and held out a piece of paper.

"You forgot your letter," she told him, holding out a piece of paper.

"That can't be," he replied, nevertheless taking it from her. "I just mailed it."

Looking at the piece of paper, however, proved her right. This was the letter he'd written to Sakura. Then what had he just … oh no. Sakura was going to kill him.

* * *

Jiraiya watched Leaf Island come into view. Thankfully, after dealing with that mess with the destroyed base, he'd finally had a bit of time to come here. He saw a few people standing around by the dock watching them come in. By the time the ship had docked and he'd walked down the ramp their numbers had grown to nearly a dozen.

"Quite the welcoming committee," he declared to an elderly gentleman who looked ready to greet him.

"You have to understand," the man replied, "this is a small village. It's been about a decade since we had a marine vessel of that size show up here. Is there any particular reason you showed up now?"

"Oh, it's nothing serious," he told the man. "My name is Jiraiya. I'm an old friend of Minato's and I just had a couple of questions to ask."

"Oh, so you're Jiraiya?" the elderly man asked rhetorically. "I heard quite a bit about you from Minato. Anyway, I'm Sarutobi Hiruzen, mayor of this village. How can I help you?"

"First off, I was wondering about Minato's son," Jiraiya began.

"What do you want with Naruto you old geezer," a new voice called.

"Konohamaru, don't be rude," a second voice admonished.

Him … a geezer? He was about to give the teenage brat a piece of his mind, but was distracted by owner of the second voice, a pretty young pink-haired woman. Maybe he could get a little research done on this island before he left. But he pulled his mind away from that; there would be time for such things later.

"As I was saying before I was interrupted," he continued, "I'm curious as to why Minato never mentioned having a son to anyone. It's not as if he never spoke of his home. He mentioned you on several occasions, but not a peep about his own son."

"I'm afraid I can't help you in that regard," Sarutobi replied. "I don't know why he never told you anything. Although it might be related to the reason he never revealed who his mother was."

"So you don't know who his mother is either?" he asked in surprise.

"No, he wasn't born on this island," the mayor answered.

It seemed Jiraiya had been on the right track when he theorized it might have something to do with Naruto's mother. That still left him at a dead end, however. If no one here knew anything, he didn't have a clue where to go from there. Maybe he'd have better luck with his second line of inquiry.

"Well, there's another issue I'd like to discuss," Jiraiya began, "but I want to keep this one a bit more private."

"Would you like to go to my office?" Sarutobi offered.

"That shouldn't be necessary," he answered. "This isn't too terribly secret. Just come over here and keep your voice down for a bit."

Looking interested, Sarutobi walked over next to him turning his back to the rest of the assembled villagers.

"I found a somewhat interesting report," Jiraiya whispered. "It says that a World Government scientist by the name of Vegapunk came to this island around the time of Minato's death. You don't happen to remember seeing him do you?"

"The Doctor Vegapunk?" he whispered back. "That certainly is interesting. But no, we didn't have any ships arrive at all around that time other than Minato's."

"You're certain of that?" Jiraiya pressed him. "It was some time ago."

"Quite certain," he answered. "And my memory hasn't gone just yet. Anyway, I'm surprised you have time to come here with everything going on right now."

"What do you mean?" Jiraiya asked in confusion.

"You know, the execution of Ace and the possible war with Whitebeard," he supplied. "It's been all over the news."

"That's impossible," Jiraiya scoffed, not even keeping his voice down anymore. "If something like that was happening, headquarters would have called me about it. Unless …"

Oh, no. He couldn't have possibly done that could he? Not even giving a goodbye, Jiraiya ran back onto the ship and over to their den den mushi. Sure enough, the receiver was still incorrectly placed as he'd left it to keep the connection open more than a week ago. He gingerly set it back in its proper position. He was startled when the phone rang only a couple of seconds later. That wasn't a good sign.

"This is Jiraiya speaking," he said into the receiver after picking it up.

"What's been going on?" the voice on the other end asked. "We've been trying to reach you for days."

"I'm afraid den den mushi was ill," he lied. "It hasn't been working for a while."

"Well, unless you're already in Marineford, it's too late now," the man informed him. "The war has already started."

"It has?" Jiraiya yelled out. "What's happening?"

"You can watch for yourself if you'd like," came the reply. "It's being broadcast to the world."

"I'll do that, thanks," Jiraiya told him, before hanging up.

Turning around he was surprised to see Sarutobi, the brat from earlier, and the hot pink-haired chick standing behind him.

"What are you doing here?" he asked accusingly.

"Yeah, you kids shouldn't have come on board without permission," Sarutobi chastised them, ignoring the fact that he had done the same himself and was making no move to depart.

He supposed it didn't really matter. This was being broadcast publicly anyway. No to mention that this could prove an opportunity to win favor with the young woman.

"It's fine," he told them. "Anyway, if you want to watch the war, I have one of the few ships in the marine fleet outfitted with its own video receiver."

"Is Naruto going to be fighting in the war?" the girl asked him nervously.

"I can't say for certain," Jiraiya replied, "but I would wager not. As young as he is, they'll probably assign him other duties. Now just wait one moment and I'll get this set up."

Moving over to the video receiver, he turned it on and was soon staring at a view of Marineford. Although he'd never seen the city with the backdrop of a huge tidal wave before. Where had that come from? The effects would be devastating to the city. The death toll would be tremendous.

He was already cringing in sympathy when the large wave simply froze solid. That must have been Aokiji. Thank goodness he was there. It looked like the battle had just gotten started and it was already being fought on such a high level. Jiraiya was cursing himself for not being there thanks to his earlier actions. There was nothing he could do now but watch.

* * *

Nojiko had taken a break from her training today to watch the battle. There was an area set up in one of the groves with huge displays showing the broadcast from Marineford. The area was already crowded with reporters and random other gawkers such as herself. Enough so that she'd only just noticed a familiar face in the crowd.

"Shino!" she called out, waving to him. "Over here!"

Shino heard her calls and soon maneuvered his way over to way she stood.

"I haven't seen much of you lately," he exclaimed. "What have you been up to?"

"I've been busy training," she answered.

"A wise decision," he commended. "I've been using my time in a similar manner."

"Anyway, that's some battle, isn't it?" she asked. "Do you think Naruto and the others will be okay?"

After seeing the tidal wave frozen, followed by that giant block of ice being hurled and melted, Nojiko was feeling a bit overwhelmed. The fight was many levels beyond her abilities. She feared it might even be too much for Naruto.

"Nothing can be certain in a war," he told her.

"Well, thanks for that comforting response," she replied sarcastically.

"Would you prefer I had lied to you?" Shino asked calmly.

"I don't know," she admitted. "I just don't like sitting here not being able to do anything but pray for their safety."

"I understand," Shino responded. "Simply watching the battle is … unpleasant."

It was unusual to hear any admission of emotion from the quietest member of their crew. But she supposed she really didn't know much about him. Was he as calm as he always appeared, or was he just really good at hiding his emotions?

Still, she couldn't distract herself for long with the enigma that was Shino. The battle that was playing out on the nearby screens all but demanded her full attention. She just hoped it ended quickly, as she wasn't certain how much of this her nerves could take.

* * *

Kiba's pacing was really starting to bug Naruto. He didn't like the fact that they'd had absolutely nothing to do yet any more than Kiba did, but at least he didn't feel the need to make a scene about it. Tashigi and Akamaru were both very much on edge as well. Haku was the only one of their little group who looked at all calm. She had decided to stay with them, her commanding officer apparently not being on Marineford.

He wasn't happy about being here himself, but it was probably best that Haku was. There weren't many enlisted marines that were much use in a fight of this level, so it was unlikely she was one of them. And thanks to Kiba's mother, they were in about the safest place on the island.

"We can't even see what's going on," Kiba complained, not for the first time. "I swear, whatever our orders are, I'm not going to be able to keep myself here much longer."

The buildings lining the street they were on did block their view of most of the battle. They could see the execution platform, but little else. Naruto had toyed with the idea of moving to a roof earlier, but testing it with his clones proved that doing so attracted a lot of attention from enemy snipers. He'd lost a few clones that way before he'd given up on that idea.

Naruto was going to make another attempt to calm Kiba down when he felt the ground begin to shake beneath him. He thought for a moment that Whitebeard was using his power again, but his eyes were quickly drawn to the real source. It was caused by the footsteps of an enormous yellowish green giant, much larger than any giant he'd ever seen. He had no trouble seeing him even over the buildings that stood between them.

"Well, if you're that eager to contribute, you can go fight that guy," Naruto quipped.

"How would you even fight something like that?" Kiba asked in awe. "You could slice him with a sword and it'd be nothing more than a paper cut to him."

Naruto didn't have a clue how one would go about fighting that thing either, yet someone must have had an idea, at it wasn't long before the giant fell. Naruto really wished he knew how it had happened. Sure he'd seen them firing cannons at the monster, but he'd seemed to shrug them off without issue. Then he just fell when he'd almost reached the platform, falling out of sight behind the buildings. He didn't get back up after that.

"It just goes to show that no matter what the pirates throw at us, the marines will put a stop to it," Tashigi announced proudly when his defeat was clear.

"Let's just hope they don't have too many more of those things to throw at us," Naruto replied.

After that excitement ended, things got very dull again. He was near the point of joining Kiba in his complaining when a nearby marine pointed at the sky and cried out something in surprise. Looking up curiously, Naruto was astonished to see what appeared to be a ship falling toward the ground. As it fell, Naruto's eyes picked out a familiar figure.

"Luffy!" he cried out in shock. "How did he get out of Impel Down?"

Haku seemed to recognize one of the falling figures as well, letting out a gasp.

"Ivan … kov," she stuttered out. "What's he doing here?"

The ship crashing into the bay seemed to snap the last of Kiba's self restraint.

"That's it," he announced. "I can't stay here a moment longer. Come on Akamaru, let's go check that out."

The dog barked a quick assent and the two of them sprinted off down the road toward where the ship had just fallen.

"Wait!" Naruto cried out running after him in an attempt to stop the young lieutenant.

He was brought up short, however, when a large sword swung down just in front of him, shattering the pavement and forcing him to skid to a halt. The person who had swung it was a dark-haired man about his own height but a bit bulkier. He was wearing a marine officer's uniform and had his face from his nose down wrapped in some type of cloth. The sword he'd just swung looked to be about as long as he was tall.

"One of you finally shows a bit of backbone and you're going to stop him?" the man taunted.

"I don't know who you are," Naruto replied. "But you don't seem to be moving from here either, so what right do you have to be implying I'm a coward."

"My names Zabuza," he informed Naruto. "And I'm not moving because I'm right where I want to be."

Then, much faster than Naruto would have expected from such a large sword, he pulled it from the ground and swung it at Naruto again. Caught off guard, Naruto barely jumped out of the way in time, actually getting a small cut on his shirt in the process.

"Not bad," Zabuza told him cheerfully.

"What are you doing?" Naruto demanded to know.

"Trying to kill you," he answered. "You see, I have a deal with Whitebeard. I start killing people here away from the action. Marines fighting and killing each other could cause all kinds of confusion, and hopefully will cause Sengoku to divert some forces here to deal with the situation."

"So you're selling out the marines for what? Money?" Tashigi asked angrily.

"That's part of it," Zabuza admitted. "Mostly though I want to join his crew. I'm growing tired of being a marine. Don't get me wrong, I love being paid to kill people, but there are just too many rules about who I'm allowed to kill. Being a pirate just started to sound more entertaining."

"I don't know what Whitebeard told you," Naruto exclaimed, "but you're a fool if you think one man is going to cause much confusion."

"One man?" Zabuza asked. "Who said anything about it being just me."

Looking around, Naruto saw dozens of marines moving to surround them. It looked like just about every marine in the area was working with Zabuza.

"Haku, stay behind me and I'll try to keep you safe," he ordered.

However, when he got no reply he looked to see what the woman was doing and found only Tashigi was standing with him. He didn't know when it had happened, but at some point Haku had vanished. Maybe she'd gone after Kiba? Whatever she'd done, it was probably best she'd gotten out while she could.

"Let me handle this traitor," Tashigi told him firmly, unsheathing her sword. "You can take care of the rest of them right?"

It seemed almost comical that she would claim one person for herself and ask him to take care of dozens. Yet he got the distinct feeling that he might actually have the easier job between the two of them. Still, getting a look at the men surrounding him, they seemed to be moving quite competently. It looked as if Zabuza hadn't wasted his time gathering weaklings. He might be in for a real fight here.

* * *

Kiba finally made his way over toward where the ship had fallen, but to say he was surprised by what he found would be an understatement. The area seemed to be filled with perverts who were now locked in combat with the surrounding marines. Some of those outfits made him want to throw up. Well, he wasn't entirely sure what was going on, but it looked like he would finally have a chance to get involved in the war.

"What do you say we teach these freaks a lesson?" Kiba asked Akamaru.

In reply his partner got into the stance that meant he was preparing to use his devil fruit power.

"Alright, let's go then," he exclaimed, picking a man in high heels that was showing way too much skin and charging for him.

As he was currently crossing swords with another marine, Kiba caught the man by surprise with a fist to the side of his head, sending him flying off and skidding across the ice. Not even slowing, Kiba picked another target who was engaged with his own opponent and dispatched him just as easily.

His actions seemed to be gaining him some attention, as a pair of inappropriately dressed swordsmen were charging straight at him. Kiba picked up the sword of the man he'd just felled and held it in front of him as if planning to cross swords.

When they were only a few feet from him, however, he hurled it at the man on the right. He brought his own sword up to deflect, but Kiba had been prepared for that, and had already pounced, following behind the sword and tackling the man who'd just blocked. Knocking him to the ground, he ripped the sword from his hand then began to beat on the man's face until he stopped moving.

His friend had already changed course, delayed a little in that process by the icy surface he was on. As he prepared to avenge his friend's defeat, Kiba picked up the unconscious man and hurled him at his partner. The man managed to duck under incoming body, but continued to slide across the ice as he did so, bringing him into Kiba's range while still in his awkward position.

At his lowered height, Kiba was easily able to send a knee into the center of the man's face, knocking him flat on his back. His only motion after that was as he slowly came to a stop after sliding across the ice. Kiba spared a quick glance toward Akamaru to see him felling a target of his own. He didn't know what his mother had been so worried about. He could take care of himself.

"Death Wink!" a voice cried out.

He'd long ago trained himself to dodge first and ask questions later, so he jumped to the side before even trying to figure out if that cry even had anything to do with him. It was a good thing he had, as the spot he'd just been standing exploded in a shower of ice fragments. Trying to find the source of the attack he spotted what had to be most grotesque man in their little band. That giant, makeup laden face was fit to give nightmares.

"Why are you attacking my boys?" the man asked.

"First of all, they're the ones who attacked us," Kiba answered. "As if I even needed an excuse to beat up on freaks like them."

"Freaks?" the man parroted, sounding offended. "What makes you think they're freaks?"

"No self-respecting man would ever wear anything like that if they weren't one," Kiba answered. "Unless you'd prefer the term pervert."

"Man, woman, why should that have anything to do with what one wears?" he inquired. "I think you could use a lesson in tolerance."

"I'd like to see you try," Kiba taunted, bracing himself for whatever attack came next.

"Emporio Onna Hormone!" the man cried out, charging at him.

As he drew near, Kiba saw the man's gloved hand take on a very claw like appearance as the fingers transformed to look almost needle sharp. Not liking the idea of getting skewered, he jumped to the side, only then realizing there had been another marine standing behind him, engaged in his own battle.

With Kiba having moved out the way, the large man had continued on, with his fingers piercing the shoulder of the marine. Kiba watched in horror at what happened next. The man's body began to quickly shrink down. His muscles lost their shape and has wide face narrowed as the skin simultaneously turned smooth. There was one part of his body that wasn't shrinking, however, as his chest grew into what was unmistakably a pair of fairly large breasts.

"What did you do to me?" the former man cried out in a very feminine voice.

Kiba took a good luck at the newly made woman and realized how close that had come to being him.

"Akamaru, run!" he yelled out.

Following his own advice he dashed off back toward the crowd of marines, hoping to loose this maniac in the process.

"I'm not letting you get away that easily," the man swore, running after him.

Kiba could tell from the footsteps that he was being gained on. Getting away might prove harder than he'd anticipated, but he was determined to manage somehow. Listening closely to the footsteps, he forced himself to wait until he knew the man was right behind him and dived into a roll. His timing had been perfect as a kick passed over him, hitting nothing but air. His relief was short lived, however, as he opponent moved right into his next attack.

"Death Wink!" he cried out.

At this close range, and still coming out of his roll, Kiba wasn't able to avoid the attack completely and was thrown through the air away from the blast site. He had yet to hit the ground when he saw his attacker spinning rapidly in a circle like some kind of demented top and approaching him fast.

Kiba crossed his arms in front of him protectively, but was unable to predict where the attack would come from as a vicious kick hit him in the side of the head and hastened his crash into the ice below. Dazed, he nonetheless tried to get back to his feet, but fell back to the ground when a wave of dizziness overwhelmed him.

Head still spinning he realized he must have a pretty bad concussion. And his pervert that had just injured Kiba was now standing over him. But he had one ray of hope left when he saw Akamaru's rapidly spinning form approaching the freakish man. Something in his expression must have given him away however as he quickly turned around.

"Death Wink!" he cried, again releasing what seemed to be his signature attack.

Not even being visible, Akamaru failed to avoid it as it hit him head on and knocked him out of his spin as he flew backwards. Kiba could already tell Akamaru was fine, which wasn't surprising as his head was his strongest point of defense when using his power. But he'd been delayed too much to save Kiba now, and he still found himself too disoriented to even stand.

"I'm sorry!" Kiba cried out in one final tactic. "I take back everything I said! Please don't do this to me!"

Even begging seemed to do nothing more than add to his humiliation, as his tormenter continued his advance, fingers already turning needle sharp again.

"I don't believe you really mean that," he exclaimed before swinging his hand down at Kiba. "Emporio Onna Hormone!"

Kiba closed his eyes and prepared for the inevitable. However, instead of a piercing sensation, he was hit with another blast and rolled several feet to the side. Opening his eyes again, he saw the crater was centered where large-headed man had just been standing, meaning he had taken the worst part of the attack. Looking around he discovered that his savior appeared to be none other than Bartholomew Kuma

"Kuma, what are you doing?" the recently attacked man yelled, having apparently survived the blast more or less unscathed.

As grateful as he was, Kiba would thank Kuma later. For now, concussion or no, he was getting out of here. Crawling along as fast as he could, Kiba quickly escaped into the crowd of marines.

* * *

Weren't minions supposed to be little more than cannon fodder? You know, one hit and they're out cold? Bonney's men had behaved like proper minions should. These fellows, however, weren't being nearly as cooperative. Sure he and his clones were winning easily enough, but it was taking far too long.

There were originally about 40 or so men, the more than six to one odds playing a large part in his difficulties. A quick count of fallen men revealed that even after all this fighting, he'd only taken out seven of them. No, wait, two of them were getting back to their feet. Did he mention they were better at taking punishment then he would have preferred? Even if he had, it bore repeating.

Suddenly the earth shook beneath him. It was violent enough that he was sure it was an earthquake this time. It looked like Whitebeard was getting actively involved in the fighting. He saw one of the men he was fighting stumble and loose his footing. Naruto used the opportunity to dash in hit him with a truly devastating right straight to the face.

The man fell, and Naruto was quite certain this one wouldn't be getting back up. That made six of them down. Taking out another one right there had made him feel a little better. The good news was that the more he thinned the crowd, the less overwhelming the numbers, and the faster he should be able to take more of them out. He just hoped Tashigi was doing well enough that she wouldn't need his help anytime soon.

* * *

Tashigi was beginning to feel pretty desperate. It hadn't taken her long to realize that this wasn't going to be an easy fight. With the range of her opponent's sword, she couldn't even get close enough to attack her opponent. Especially with how fast he could swing that monstrous sword. Nor could she easily parry something with that much force behind it.

So she'd been fighting defensively, dashing just in and out of Zabuza's range, hoping to tire him out. But he didn't give the slightest hint of doing anything of the sort. He was still easily swinging that massive sword even with a single hand. In addition, she was still in a situation where one slip could cause her to loose her head.

Still, it was becoming clear that no matter how dangerous it was, her only hope was to put everything on the line and try to get past his sword, taking him out with a single attack. She knew full well from the testing of his defenses she'd tried earlier than that the odds were against her succeeding, but she wasn't going to let that stop her. If she backed down here, she didn't deserve to cross swords with Zoro ever again.

Although that didn't mean she shouldn't approach this as carefully as possible. Perhaps she could distract him with conversation or say something to anger him and make him sloppy. Anything that might give her an opening would be worth considering. She'd been hoping the earthquakes they kept getting might provide what she needed, but Zabuza proved amazingly surefooted. It was almost as if the ground wasn't even moving for him.

"That's a pretty nice sword you have," she exclaimed, "but I don't recognize it. I find that odd as I consider myself something of an expert."

"I'm not surprised you don't," he replied. "I had it custom made just a few years back. It wasn't anyone famous, but he was surprisingly good at his work."

"Who was it?" Tashigi asked, genuinely curious. "I'd like to meet the man who could make a sword that well."

"You don't need to worry about that," Zabuza assured her. "You see, there are only two swords like this in the world."

"What does that have to do with anything?" Tashigi inquired.

"He was only supposed to make one sword," Zabuza answered. "When I found out he made a second for someone else, I hunted him down and killed him."

Tashigi felt a flash of rage but fought it down. She was supposed to be the one angering him, not the other way around. She should probably step up her efforts in that regard as well.

"I'm not surprised a traitorous monster like yourself would stoop so low," she taunted.

"A monster am I?" he asked, sounding offended. "I'll show you just what this monster can do."

This was just the opening she needed. He was charging her while pulling his sword back for a powerful swing. She couldn't afford to waste a second and sprinted to meet his charge head on. She knew he was surprisingly nimble with that sword, but she still calculated the she could skewer him before he could complete his swing.

And it was all going according to plan as she thrust her sword out toward his chest, watching as the point rapidly approach his body and then stopped a mere inch before hitting it. She'd been so focused on her attack it took her a moment to figure out what had gone wrong. He had stopped mid charge and actually jumped back a foot or so.

The break in his forward momentum hadn't stopped the motion of his swing, however, and she realized the opening itself had been a ploy to trap her. He'd probably seen through what she'd been planning right from the start and just strung her along.

Not having time to dodge, she pulled her sword back to block the incoming attack. It was a testament to her will that she held on tightly to Kusanagi and didn't drop the blade even as the force of the attack lifted her entire body and hurled her backward.

However, when her back landed flat on the pavement she wasn't able to stop the sword from escaping her now numb hands. She watched as it continued sliding for several feet, coming to a stop out of her reach. Worse than that Zabuza was already standing over her with his sword in hand.

"You fought better than I expected, but it's your loss," he told her, preparing for the finishing blow.

She couldn't believe she'd lost again, and it wasn't even to Zoro this time. She really was a failure. She didn't know how she had ever fooled herself into believing a clumsy girl like her could ever hope to master the sword.

However, failure or not, she wasn't going to just sit here and let him slaughter her. Knowing it was almost certainly futile, she nevertheless twisted around and scurried to her sword. She heard a cry from Zabuza behind her and thought she was about to have her back slices open, but nothing came, and she picked up Kusanagi unharmed, turning back around to face her opponent.

The sight that greeted her was one of Naruto pulling his index finger out from the bicep of Zabuza's sword arm where he must have just hit it with a Shigan. So that cry of his must have been in response to Naruto's attack. Tashigi was impressed to see him jump away still holding up his sword despite the injury.

"I'm going to have to have a talk to my with my men for letting you interfere like that," Zabuza announced darkly.

"And what men would those be?" Naruto quipped.

Examining their surroundings confirmed that the three of them were now the only marines left conscious. The rest of the area was filled with dozens of unmoving forms.

"What's going on over here?" a new voice asked.

Tashigi saw an officer at the head of a sizable contingent of marines calling out from further down the street as he ran toward them.

"It looks like my mission wasn't a complete failure," Zabuza exclaimed. "But it's time for me to make my exit."

After saying so he slammed his sword into the ground, sending up a cloud of dust and broken shards of pavement. Tashigi held back, afraid it was another trick and she'd be sliced in two if she charged into that dust cloud. Naruto was remaining cautious as well, and by the time the cloud had cleared enough to make out anything behind it, they were just able to see Zabuza ducking around a corner to a side street.

"After him," she called out.

Not that it was necessary, as Naruto was already in motion himself. The two of them hurried around the corner, only to find him nowhere in sight. Nevertheless, they ran onward, looking down side streets as they went. Finally they came to one that held a familiar face, even if it didn't belong to Zabuza.

"What are you doing here?" Buggy the Clown cried out in surprise.

* * *

"The picture is back again," Sakura called out excitedly.

This drew back the attention of the two older men who had been in the middle of a discussion. Something about a book Jiraiya wrote from the bits and pieces she caught.

"It's only that Buggy guy again," Konohamaru complained. "Show us something exciting already."

Almost as if the boy's words had summoned them, Naruto and that Tashigi girl he worked with chose that moment to run around the corner and into view.

"It's Naruto!" Sakura cried out in surprise.

"I guess he was there after all," Jiraiya admitted.

"This is awesome," Konohamaru exclaimed excitedly. "We're going to see Naruto beat up that stupid red-nosed pirate."

"Why do I keep running into you?" they heard Buggy proclaim, upon seeing the pair. "Can't you just leave me alone? And who is that guy with you anyway?"

Buggy's words drew her attention to a pale faced man who was rapidly moving up behind Naruto. As he held up his sword, however, it became clear he wasn't 'with' the blond-haired marine.

"Look out!" Konohamaru cried out, despite how pointless his warning would be.

Sakura held her breath, but Buggy's words had alerted Naruto to the danger as he caught sight of his attacker and dodged the incoming weapon. He quickly moved away, getting some distance. Seeing his escape, Sakura was able to start breathing again.

"Orochimaru!" he heard Jiraiya gasp. "He's supposed to be locked up tightly in Impel Down."

"So you were part of the escape as well?" she heard Naruto ask the man.

"He didn't come with us," Buggy interjected.

"Yeah, I think I'd remember him being there," one of the men with him agreed.

"I was part of a different escape," the former Shichibukai informed them. "And my benefactor was kind enough to give me this opportunity for revenge against the person who put me there in the first place. I also intend to take back what belongs to me."

"You're never getting Kusanagi back," Tashigi promised boldly.

"Tashigi," Naruto announced. "If he uses his power, don't even hesitate for a second in killing him, no matter what the circumstances."

"Right," Tashigi agreed.

Not wasting any time, Naruto created five of those clones of his and surrounded Orochimaru. The brief demonstration she'd received when Naruto had last visited had helped make the scene a little less surreal for her. It hadn't, however, prepared her for the sight of all five of the clone firing off Rankyakus in rapid succession. One of them had even used Geppou to position itself directly above Orochimaru, firing down at his head.

"Yeah, that's how you do it!" Konohamaru cheered loudly at the sight.

"That's certainly the most impressive use of Rankyaku I've ever seen," Sarutobi exclaimed, clearly proud of his former student.

After several seconds trapped in the center of Naruto's attacks, Orochimaru was seen bursting free, having blocked one of the incoming attacks with his sword and slipped out the opening. She supposed she couldn't expect anyone who had climbed to the rank of Shichibukai to fall that easily. Still, she was pleased to see that the man hadn't escaped unscathed, having received numerous cuts across his body. She just fervently hoped the fight didn't take a turn for the worse.

* * *

The crowd was really starting to work itself into a fever again now that the footage was back online. Not that she could blame them seeing as Naruto was clearly winning against Orochimaru. Sure Tashigi was providing some aid, but Naruto was the uncontested star of the show with that stunning combination attack his clones kept using.

"I can hardly believe this," a man near her announced as he scribbled furiously on a notepad. "Some random kid comes out of nowhere and gets the better of one of the Shichibukai in a fight. If I weren't watching this with my own eyes, I wouldn't have believed he was really the one who captured Orochimaru in the first place no matter what the man claimed."

"It will make a great addition to our story, though," a man standing next to him replied. "I just wish I knew who he was."

Even if she was doing nothing more than watching, she almost felt it a point of personal pride to hear what appeared to be a couple of reporters getting so excited over Naruto's fight. In fact, she couldn't resist the urge to provide them the information they wanted."

"His name is Namikaze Naruto," she exclaimed loudly enough for the men to hear.

"Namikaze Naruto?" the reporter repeated back to her as he moved closer to where she stood. "Is he in any way related to the late Admiral Namikaze Minato?"

"Yes, he's Minato's son," she confirmed.

"That's perfect," his partner interjected. "The World Government has been on our case for 'glorifying pirates' lately. I worried how we were going to cover this war, what with the Luffy stealing so much of the limelight. Being able to set up a young marine and son of the famous Admiral Minato as a hero should keep them happy. By the way, how do you know about him, miss?"

"The two of us our bounty hunters," Shino answered for her, even if it wasn't entirely true in her case. "We've worked with him in the past."

"Can you tell us more about his power?" the man asked as a follow-up question.

"What rank is he?" a new voice added.

"What is he like as a person?" came a question from yet another reporter.

It seemed their conversation had been overheard, and now all the reporters in the area were swarming around, eager for more information. She was a bit overwhelmed by the reaction and was beginning to wonder if she should have said anything in the first place. Nojiko just hoped Naruto didn't mind a little bit of fame, because it didn't look like he was going to have much choice in the matter.

* * *

As the fight progressed, Naruto was almost a bit disappointed. He knew he should be thrilled to be doing so well against Orochimaru, but it was clear that he was far from in top form. He was moving significantly slower than when last they fought. Enough so that Naruto knew his own improved speed wasn't simply causing him to imagine it. His time in Impel Down must have left him in less than perfect condition. Fighting him like this almost seemed like cheating.

Not that he was going to let his feelings get in the way of doing his job. Orochimaru was still a dangerous criminal, and if his weakened state made him easier to deal with, then all the better. He already seemed to be in pretty poor condition from his wounds, so it was about time to finish this off.

Signaling his clones, they all moved in on the wounded man, attempting to grapple him to the ground and subdue him. For a little while, it looked like they were going to succeed. But somehow Orochimaru managed to contort his body in a manner that shouldn't have been possible, allowing him to slip free from the grasp of one of Naruto's clones. He then disposed of another by stabbing it in the chest and broke free, running away from the pile of clones and right toward a waiting Tashigi.

As preoccupied as he'd been getting away from Naruto's clones, he must not have noticed Tashigi in time, as her sword swung down and cut deep into his right head, causing him to drop his own weapon. Orochimaru still had the presence of mind to move away from her, avoiding the strike that was meant to finish him off. That was probably little comfort to him seeing as he was now unarmed and even more injured than before.

"That's enough," came a voice that Naruto instantly recognized.

"Blackbeard!" Naruto called out to the large man who now stood a short distance away.

Normally Naruto would have been thrilled to have a chance for a rematch against the pirate that had nearly killed him. However, with Orochimaru not yet fully dealt with and a number of other pirates standing with the man, the situation didn't look very good for him.

"I admit I'm surprised to see you alive, Naruto," Blackbeard told him, almost sounding cheerful in his proclamation. "You'll have to tell me how you managed that sometime. As for you, Orochimaru, I think it's time you forget about this fight. I didn't rescue you just so you could get yourself killed."

"I'm not done here," Orochimaru hissed in reply. "If you're so worried about me, why don't you give me a hand?"

"Sorry, but thanks to you I revealed myself earlier than I would have liked," he answered. "We need to move on to the next stage of my plan as quickly as possible."

"Then do it yourself," Orochimaru snapped. "I never agreed to work for you."

"That's your choice of course," Blackbeard told him. "Feel free to stay here by yourself. I'm sure you can handle all the marines gathered here just fine when they're done dealing with Whitebeard."

He could tell Orochimaru was furious at the other pirate. He was sure the man's ego was protesting loudly at the thought of conceding to anyone else's will. Nevertheless, that's exactly what he did.

"Very well," he exclaimed reluctantly, before turning to Naruto. "I will yet make you suffer until you beg for death, I promise you that."

Naruto wished very much that he could pursue the new fleeing Orochimaru, but he knew Blackbeard was a formidable opponent. Beyond that, he was pretty sure he recognized some of the men standing with him, and while he couldn't recall any details, he got the distinct impression they weren't people to taken lightly. In short, forcing a confrontation was likely to be little short of suicide.

"Let's at least take care of Buggy," Naruto declared.

However, although he was certain he'd seen him several times during the fight, Buggy and his men were now nowhere in sight. The coward had run off at some point. He was surprised Tashigi was being so quiet about recent events, and turning to figure out why he saw her gaping off into the distance at what appeared to be nothing. Although he quickly realized that the fact there was nothing there was the key.

"The execution platform is gone," Tashigi announced numbly. "What exactly is going on here? They couldn't actually have rescued Ace could they?"

"I don't know," Naruto answered, "but I intend to find out."

* * *

Sarutobi secretly admitted he hadn't been any more thrilled than Konohamaru or Sakura when Buggy the Clown had run off before they could see what happened with this Blackbeard fellow, even if he had been a bit less vocal in his displeasure. The only positive was that his flight with the video feed had now given them a view of the main battle.

"How are there so many of that big guy?" Konohamaru asked. "Does he have the same power as Naruto?"

More than a little curious himself, Sarutobi examined the identical figures before he caught a detail on one them that proved a real shock. That one had taken damage on one of its arms allowing him to clearly see the gleam of metal parts. That sight started the beginning of a very dark suspicion in his mind, one that he just couldn't seem to let go of.

"They're mechanical men," he announced simply.

"Really? That's awesome!" Konohamaru announced enthusiastically.

The mayor, however, had been watching Jiraiya's reaction closely when he said that. Jiraiya didn't strike him as the type of person good at hiding his emotions, yet he hadn't caught a hint of surprise at his announcement. He would wager heavily the man knew something about these machines.

"Tell me, is Doctor Vegapunk behind these creations?" he asked the vice admiral.

"Military projects are top secret," Jiraiya answered evasively. "Even if I did know anything, I wouldn't be at liberty to say."

"Come now," Sarutobi argued, "this scene is being broadcast to the world. It's not as if there's much point in denying them now."

"Well, I'll tell you this much," Jiraiya answered. "It's no secret that Doctor Vegapunk is the World Government's top scientist. Most of the stuff they do develop he's had his hand in one way or another."

Sarutobi was pretty certain now that Doctor Vegapunk had something to do with the events leading to Minato's death. He'd always wondered why the machine his ancestors had guarded for so long had come to life after centuries of slumber. Now he had a potential explanation. However, simply knowing what happened wouldn't be nearly enough to satisfy him. No matter how noble the cause, Sarutobi couldn't forgive anyone who toyed with the lives of those he cared for.

* * *

Even with those vigor hormones he'd received, Luffy could tell his body was at its limits. But he wouldn't stop now, not when he was so close. Ace had been freed and they were more than halfway back to the ships. He was surprised, however, when Ace came to a stop and turned around.

"Blackbeard," Ace spat out angrily.

"I'll handle him, Ace!" Whitebeard yelled as he turned to face the man. "The rest of you escape!"

"Luffy, you get out of here," Ace ordered him. "I need to help the old man."

That was an order Luffy wasn't about to follow, no matter how much his exhausted body wanted him to.

"If you're helping him then so am I," Luffy insisted stubbornly. "I owe him for helping me rescue you, anyway."

"No, Ace, all you, get out of here now! That's an order from your captain!" Whitebeard commanded them, before swinging his fist and causing the earth to shake again.

This earthquake caused a large rift to form in the ground between Whitebeard and his crew, preventing them from coming to his aid and stopping most of the marines from giving pursuit.

"What are you doing?" Ace demanded of him, we all need to get out of here.

Rather than answer him, Whitebeard chose to engage Blackbeard, and from the looks of things, he never needed their help in the first place. He had his hand wrapped firmly around the other pirate's head as he held him against the ground he'd just slammed him into.

"Get him!" Blackbeard yelled fearfully.

Following their orders, Whitebeard was swarmed by the other pirates Blackbeard had brought with him. He was shot repeatedly and stabbed by several weapons while Whitebeard's own crew looked on in horror. Luffy felt sorry for his brother, who was clearly in shock at the man's death.

Luffy removed his hat and bowed his head in respect, so it came as a great surprise to realize that Whitebeard wasn't actually dead yet. He was definitely saying something, but Luffy couldn't make out what. At least until he raised his voice into one final shout, that was.

"One Piece is real!" he cried out at the top of lungs.

Despite the situation they were in, Luffy couldn't help but feel inspired by the man's sudden proclamation. Not that he'd ever doubted for a moment the truth of what Whitebeard had just claimed.

"He's dead!" he heard Blackbeard call out. "He died standing!"

"Old man!" Ace cried out in horror, tears forming in his eyes. "Why didn't you just escape with us?"

"You should be worrying about yourself," a man called out, moving swiftly toward them.

Luffy recognized him as the one admiral he hadn't fought yet, Akainu. Clearly enraged by the death of the man he considered his father, Ace charged straight at Akainu, turning himself to flames as he met the man head on.

As brightly as Ace was burning, Luffy couldn't even see Akainu behind him, but when they collided it was Ace who was tossed back. As the flames receded from his body, Luffy could see that his right arm was badly charred.

"How did _you_ get burned?" Luffy asked in surprise.

"I have the power of magma, which burns even fire," Akainu declared in response to his question. "And given your fathers, I absolutely cannot allow either of you to leave here alive."

"I'm not going to let you kill either of us," Luffy swore, preparing to fight back.

As determined as his mind was to defend them, his body decided that now was the moment to give up, causing him to fall to ground. Struggle as his might, he just couldn't summon up the energy to get back to his feet. The timing could hardly be worse either, as Akainu was charging straight for him.

What he saw next, however, chilled him even more than the threat to his own life. Ace was running full speed toward him, placing himself directly in the path of Akainu in order to take the blow for Luffy. If Luffy couldn't do anything, Ace would end up with far worse than a burned arm.

He strained his body harder than he ever had before, but it still refused to obey him. Meanwhile, Akainu appeared to be inching closer in slow motion. Even with time seeming to slow to a crawl, however, he'd been so focused on Ace and Akainu that he was completely caught by surprise when a foot slammed into Akainu's head.

The admiral was hurled away by the force of the flying kick Naruto's mother had just hit him with. The red-haired woman just stood there looking at her handiwork and appearing very pleased with herself.

"Ace, you get your brother out of here," she ordered. "I'll keep him busy until you're gone. But after this we're even."

"Of course," Luffy said cheerfully, as Ace obliged her by picking up his still limp body. "Thanks for saving Ace."

"We'll save you a spot on the ship," Ace promised her. "So don't stay too long."

"No need to wait up for me," Kushina told him. "I still have something left to do after I deal with him."

"I won't let you stop me," Akainu exclaimed, having gotten back to his feet. "Those two have to die."

Akainu then charged at them a second time, but Kushina got in his way and sent a roundhouse kick at him that force the man to stop in his tracks as he used a cross armed block to defend himself.

"Let's go," Ace told him as he began to run toward the ships.

Luffy watched the two combatants duking it out behind them. As their forms grew more and more distant he realized one thing was absolutely certain: Naruto had a really awesome mother.

* * *

Tashigi and Naruto were pursuing the now fleeing pirates. Thanks to Naruto's Geppou, he was able to get them over the chasm Whitebeard had formed. A number of other marines had either been on this side, or managed to get over via their own methods and there were still quite a few battles going on as pirates retreated.

She just couldn't believe the red-haired woman fighting Akainu had managed to hold him off this long, even if he had been slowly making progress toward the shore. It didn't look like he'd make it in time, however, as Ace and Luffy were getting on a submarine of all things that had appeared from nowhere.

She was wracking her mind trying to come up with some way they could still stop Ace from escaping his execution and save face for the marines. She needed to turn her thoughts to more immediate concerns, however, when the ground began to shake beneath her in one of the most violent quakes yet. But how could that be with Whitebeard dead?

"With both Whitebeard's power and my own, I'm truly unstoppable now!" Blackbeard shouted triumphantly.

That had been Blackbeard's doing? It wasn't supposed to even be possible to have a two devil fruit powers. Not to mention she'd never heard of a way to steal a power from a dead man. Still that was a concern someone else would have to worry about.

The ground was now stable again, and Tashigi was pleased to see the woman fighting Akainu had finally realized how hopeless her fight was and was fleeing from the admiral. She was so panicked she wasn't even heading in the right direction. Actually, it looked as if she was running right toward the two of them.

"Watch out," Naruto warned her. "This one looks tough, but we may be able to catch her off guard. She probably doesn't expect much from marines as young as us."

As the woman neared, Naruto summoned his clones and had them move to swarm the woman. However, she weaved between them almost as if it had been a choreographed routine. With their opponent having made it past his clones, Naruto went into action himself. Striking out with a fist, he moved faster than she'd ever seen him move before.

Even that speed proved insufficient, as she dodged around the strike and slammed something down on the wrist of the offending hand. Following up, she yanked forward on his arm while simultaneously sweeping Naruto's feet out from under him, causing him to loose his balance and fall face first to the ground.

Still holding his arm, she twisted it around behind his back and grabbed the other one. She fumbled with something and Tashigi could see that Naruto's hands were now handcuffed behind him.

"Got you," the woman said simply.

"Let him go," Tashigi ordered, charging at the woman.

She didn't know what this woman was up to, but she wasn't about to let her get away with it. However, she ducked under the horizontal slice Tashigi sent her way, then scooped Naruto up, placing him over her shoulders and ran off toward the ships.

Tashigi immediately gave pursuit. Naruto was clearly larger than his captor and was fiercely struggling to get away. You would think that would slow the woman enough to make it easy for Tashigi to overtake her. Yet somehow she found herself falling further and further behind.

Part of that was due to the fact that the woman seemed to be deliberately running through the most crowded areas. While she seemed almost unhindered as she weaved through the marines and pirates, Tashigi was finding her progress slowed significantly.

Not giving up, she redoubled her efforts, pushing and shoving her way through the crowd to try to catch up. Yet as if by some divine prank, a marine who was still fighting nearby chose that moment to take a step backward, causing Tashigi to crash into him and spill to the ground losing her grip on Kusanagi.

It took painfully long to disentangle herself and reclaim her sword, and by the time she was able to continue her pursuit, she saw her target climbing aboard a marine ship that looked to be moments from departure.

In frustration, she continued to rush toward the ship, which judging by the various other figures climbing aboard looked to be captured. However, the crowds seemed to have grown even tighter as they neared the shore. She realized how much danger she must be in, surrounded by so many pirates, but pressed on without giving it a second thought.

She was surprised to see, however, another marine making her way through the pirates. One she recognized as Haku, the young woman who had disappeared during their fight with Zabuza. Even more surprising, she seemed to be threading her way through the crowd as nimbly as the red-haired woman had.

The ship was already moving away, and Tashigi was nearly certain neither of them would make it time. Although if Haku thought it was hopeless, she didn't slow in her efforts any more than Tashigi. She saw Haku reach the end of the dock and leap toward the departing ship, managing to latch on to the rim of a cannon on the ship's side.

She then pulled herself up on top of it and used it as a perch to climb onto the deck, disappearing from Tashigi's sight. When Tashigi finally made it to the end of the dock herself, there wasn't any hope of her catching the departing vessel.

"Stop that ship!" she yelled out to anyone around her who might hear her.

Unsurprisingly, no one listened to her plea. Her heart sunk as she watched it pull further and further into the distance as she was powerless to do anything about it.

"Stop!" she cried out again in despair.

"Stop!" came cry that carried much further but didn't come from her own lips.

For a moment she dared to hope someone was coming to her aid. Maybe Aokiji had come and he could freeze the water around the ship. Searching desperately for the source of the cry, she found it didn't belong to a marine admiral, but to Red-Haired Shanks. What was another one of the Yonkou doing here?

"Enough people have already died today," he declared loudly. "I'm here to put a stop to the fighting. If anyone wants to continue, they can deal with me."

"Don't look at me," Blackbeard called out in response. "I got what I came here for, and I have no intention of dealing with someone like you just yet."

"How about you, Sengoku?" Shanks queried. "What's your reply?"

"Very well," Sengoku answered reluctantly. "Everyone is to let any remaining pirates go. This war is over."

No, they couldn't let them go. They still had to stop the ship Naruto was on. How could Sengoku be saying that now? Her eyes were already wet with tears of frustration. She sincerely hoped that Haku would be able to rescue Naruto, but she wasn't going to sit around and entrust his fate to her. There had to be someone here on Marineford who could help her and she wasn't going to rest until she found him.

* * *

**AN**

A quick note: I trust most people reading Naruto fanfiction would already now this, but Uzumaki is Japanese for whirlpool. That's what was being referenced in the discussion about Kushina's name and power.

I know some people might have preferred Naruto take a more active role in the major events of the war, but I never had any intention of that from the start. So I kept the important events more or less the same. Although I did change around the timing of some things while trying to minimize having to go into too much detail about scenes that were already written in canon.

And even if Naruto wasn't responsible for any major changes to how things went himself, he got a major jumpstart to building his own fame, a fact that should please a number of people. Besides, by sticking so much to canon events for most of the story, I'm hoping to have built up some expectation I would do the same with Ace.

It becomes almost the expectation that an author will change events for the better, so I needed all the help I could get or everyone would just assume I wouldn't let him die. Whitebeard and Oars Jr are still dead, however. I'm not writing this to make a happy fun world filled with unicorns and rainbows where no tragedies ever occur.

The next chapter will be chock full of reunions, first meetings, etc. Most all of them that people have been clamoring for, so look forward to that. I'll use it to tie up most of the immediate loose ends and resolve things from this arc. I don't expect it to give me as much trouble as this one did, so hopefully there will be a shorter wait. After that, I may consider using the time skip eventually, but I have three small arcs of 1-3 chapters each planned before that happens.

One of those arcs, however, I'd like some opinions on. This isn't a vote, and I'll still make the final decision myself, but I want to know how people would feel about an arc that doesn't involve Naruto directly but is still important to the plot. Would you rather it be written out in full, or have the results summarized when Naruto hears about it?

Don't limit your reviews to that however, I'm eager to hear comments and criticism for this chapter as well.


	19. Chapter 19

**Warning:** It's probably a little late to mention this, but as you must have noticed last chapter, this does contain manga spoilers for those only following the anime. There will be more spoilers along that line in this chapter and there will be the risk of more in all future chapters.

* * *

Tashigi turned to run back toward the marine forces, hoping to find help. Although she certainly wasn't expecting that help to bear the face of the very person she was trying to rescue. In fact, there were five copies of said face. She had completely forgotten about Naruto's clones. Her shock quickly turned to anger when she realized how little they'd done to prevent the real Naruto's capture.

"What are you doing just standing there?" she asked. "Why didn't you do anything to stop her?"

"There wasn't any reason to," the lead one of the group replied with a smirk. "She only thinks she got the real me. She didn't know that I can switch places with my clones. Now I'll be able to spy on her risk free."

"So you're the real Naruto?" she asked in relief.

"Actually it's not me," he answered.

"Then which one of you is it?" she queried.

She received only silence in reply as the five of them looked among each other in confusion. She hoped dearly that this was just some overly cruel joke he was playing on her, but judging by the ashen looks the clones now sported, that didn't seem very likely.

"They must have been seastone cuffs!" one of the clones called out in horror.

"And that didn't occur to you before now?" she yelled accusingly.

"Of course it did!" the lead clone snapped back. "We just assumed that if he hadn't been able to swap places, he would have done a better job of escaping."

She wanted to berate the clones further, but she realized it was a bit silly to yell at someone for not doing a better job of rescuing himself. Besides, it would only be a waste valuable time.

"We need to see about forming a rescue party to go after you," Tashigi declared.

"You're right," Naruto agreed. "Everyone spread out and look for Commodore Tsume or anyone else who might be able to help."

The rest of clones ran off to do just that, leaving only the one who had spoken. He looked prepared to depart himself right up until Tashigi heard Kiba calling out to them.

"Naruto! Tashigi!" he cried out, jogging over to them a bit unsteadily as Akamaru trotted along beside him.

"Are you alright?" Naruto asked him in concern.

"I'm fine," he insisted.

Tashigi, however, wasn't convinced at all by his words. In addition to his unsteadiness on his feet, he had a very dazed look on his face. Still, he didn't seem too badly injured, so if he was going to insist he was fine, she wasn't going to argue.

"We don't have time to explain, but do you know where Commodore Tsume is?" she asked.

"Who?" Kiba replied in confusion, before a flash of recognition went across his face a moment later. "Oh, my mother."

"Are you sure you're alright?" Naruto asked him.

"Yes, I already said I was," he snapped back. "Anyway, Akamaru can find her, no problem, just like he found you two."

"Great, then let's go," Tashigi demanded.

Akamaru must have sensed her urgency, as he wasted no time turning around and running off back in the direction he'd come from. Tashigi, Kiba, and the remaining clone followed after the large dog. They were steadily making their way back toward the remains the of the execution platform when Tashigi spotted someone else who might be able to aid them.

"Hold up," she ordered her companions before addressing the marine officer she'd just spotted. "Smoker!"

The rugged looking marine turned in response to her call, locking his eyes on her instantly.

"Ah, Tashigi," he called back, as the two of them made their way through the crowd of marines until they'd reached each other. "I wasn't sure whether you'd be here or not. It's good to see you again."

"I'd love to catch up," Tashigi told him, "but we have an emergency. My captain was abducted during the war."

"He was?" Kiba exclaimed in surprise from behind her. "When did that happen?"

"Forgive me," Smoker said, looking a bit perplexed, "but I have been following your exploits a bit, and isn't that your captain behind you?"

"I don't know how much you know about my power," Naruto began explaining, "but I'm just a copy that I used my ability to create. The real me was captured by the red-haired woman who was fighting Admiral Akainu."

"Well, I believe I know her motive," Smoker answered, his face taking on a very grim expression. "Unfortunately, you're probably not going to like it."

"What do you mean?" Tashigi queried, growing worried as a result of his words.

"That woman was Uzumaki Kushina," he answered. "She's an escaped convict from Impel Down who was imprisoned by Naruto's father. If she'd captured him, it's most likely for the purpose of revenge."

"I wouldn't worry too much," Naruto's clone cut in. "She may have me in seastone handcuffs now, but if she removes them for even a moment, I'll be able to swap with one of my clones. Also, even if she goes so far as to kill me, it will just force a swap."

"Does that work if she kills you while you're still wearing the handcuffs?" Smoker asked him.

"I don't know," Naruto admitted. "It's not exactly something I would test out."

"Still, if she'd wanted to kill you, she'd probably have just done so rather than carting you off," Smoker noted. "What I'm more concerned about is what she does plan to do with you. I've seen pirates do things to a person that would break even the strongest of men. Even if you do escape, you might not come out the same person as you went in."

She knew he wasn't doing it on purpose, but his words continued to add to her anxiety. The thought of Naruto being tortured while they were standing here talking proved too much for her to handle.

"We have to do something now!" she insisted. "Kushina took him onto a marine battleship. I saw a number of those strangely dressed prisoners climbing on board as well, so I'm pretty sure the ship was captured. You can get us a ship right? We need to go after them."

"Calm down," Smoker ordered. "The higher ups aren't going to like the idea of escaped convicts with their own marine ship. I'll make sure they're informed of the situation and send a force after them. As for you, I need you to help tend to the wounded. There is no shortage of them around, and we need to save as many as we can."

"You can't expect me to just wait around here after what you just said, can you?" she protested.

Her words didn't seem to move her former captain, who continued to stare at her resolutely.

"Tashigi, I need you to trust me," he told her. "I promise you I'll handle this situation. But going after them ourselves would be pointless. They have a head start and we don't have any ships here that fast enough to catch them even if we did know which way they went. Our best chance is to call in other ships to trap them in a net."

She wanted to protested further, but Naruto stopped her with a hand on her shoulder.

"He's right," he told her. "There are a lot of people here who need our help. I wouldn't want to tell their families that I just let them lie there and die because I was more concerned with my own hide even if we did have a chance of catching them."

Tashigi wouldn't want to have that conversation either, but as callous as it might sound, there were some lives she simply cared more about than others. Still, she knew when she was beaten. Arguing further wouldn't help Naruto or the injured marines.

"Fine," she conceded. "Let's get to work."

Naruto nodded and the two of them began to hurry off, but Naruto quickly stopped and turned around.

"You coming, Kiba?" he asked.

"Huh?" Kiba replied, before seeming to shake himself from a stupor. "I mean I'm right behind you."

"Maybe we should start by getting Kiba to a doctor," Tashigi suggested, as the marine in question hurried off in the completely wrong direction.

* * *

"Tell me how to find Vegapunk," Sarutobi demanded of Jiraiya almost as soon as the video stopped.

"What?" Jiraiya asked in surprise. "That information is top secret. I can't reveal it to anyone."

He wasn't expecting this to be easy. On the other hand, Jiraiya knew Minato as well, perhaps he could use that to appeal to the man.

"Minato told me he trusted you," he informed Jiraiya, "so I'm going to trust you as well. For generations this village has guarded an ancient weapon in the form of a mechanical man. This weapon slept for all this time without any sign of life. At least until a little over a decade ago."

"You don't mean …" Jiraiya began letting his words trail off.

"Yes, it was the true cause of Minato's death," he confirmed. "He died destroying the weapon. But perhaps he wasn't as thorough as I'd thought considering those things we just witnessed fighting."

"Those are actually cyborgs," Jiraiya informed him. "There are living parts inside the mechanical shell."

"Even so, you don't expect me to believe he had nothing to do with this, do you?" Sarutobi scoffed. "Not after your own admission that he was here right around the time the machine started up."

"What?" came the twin cries of Sakura and Konohamaru.

"That was supposed to be between us," Jiraiya complained. "You really are trying to get me in trouble here aren't you?"

"I have to find out the truth about what happened," he told Jiraiya. "It would be easiest if you told me how to find Vegapunk, but I won't give up even if you refuse."

"Can you just let me think about it for a while?" Jiraiya requested. "You really are asking a lot, you realized."

"Of course," he agreed. "I have some preparations to make anyway."

With their discussion concluded, Sarutobi left the ship and returned to his home, deep in thought. Entering, he grabbed the metal staff he favored as a weapon, along with his bracers and few other pieces of protective gear he used. All of them were well worn from many a fight against marauding pirates.

Still, he really was getting much too old for this. It was a strange thought that the first time in his long life he'd leave this island was to go on a journey he knew very well he might not survive. Yet he wasn't overly concerned with that possibility. He had been completely honest when he'd told Naruto that letting Minato go into that cave alone was the greatest regret of his life. No matter what happened, he could consider this some small form of atonement.

He realized he was spending too much time just standing here lost in thought, so he finished gathering his supplies and left his home, possibly for the last time. As soon as he had, he saw his son, Asuma, with a group of five other villagers waiting for him.

Sarutobi let out a sigh at the sight. He really didn't want this right now. He'd recently informed the villagers about the truth of the island's 'curse.' They had taken it much better than he expected, which was to say quite poorly. Not that he could really blame them. It looked like he was in for another 'talking to.'

"Sakura and Konohamaru told us about Vegapunk," Asuma informed him.

"Of course they did," Sarutobi replied bitterly.

He really should have had the foresight to talk to Jiraiya in private. He supposed the purpose of this gathering was slightly less troublesome than he'd first imagined, if only barely.

"You can't talk me out of doing this," he told the group. "My mind is made up."

"We're not here to stop you," Asuma replied. "We're coming too."

"I appreciate the offer," he told them honestly, "but this is my fight."

"It's not just your fight," his son insisted. "There isn't a person in this village who didn't think highly of Minato. He's saved several of our lives. Even any ill will he earned by leaving the island dissipated when we learned you'd been lying to us all this time. We're not about to let his murderer go unpunished any more than you are."

"Alright," Sarutobi conceded genuinely moved by their determination.

"We got another one!" Konohamaru cried out, as he and Sakura led one more villager toward their gathering.

"I have to admit, that was a touching scene," Jiraiya announced from a short distance away.

"Touching enough that you'll tell me where Vegapunk is?" he asked hopefully.

"Nope," Jiraiya answered quickly.

"I understand," Sarutobi told him, a bit disappointed despite his words.

"I will take you there myself, instead, if you'd like," he offered.

"There's no need for you to go that far," he assured the man. "It would be hard for you to hide your involvement if you did."

"I'm aware of that," Jiraiya responded. "But that doesn't change my mind. Now realize that I'm not going to give you anything unless you promise to let me confirm there was actually foul play involved."

"Of course," he interrupted the man in order to agree. "I wouldn't have it any other way."

"However, if it does turn out to be as bad as it looks, " Jiraiya continued, "I just can't stomach the thought of letting Minato go unavenged."

"Great! Let's go then," Konohamaru declared cheerfully.

"You're not going anywhere," Asuma told him, grabbing the teen and starting to drag him back off toward the village.

"No fair!" the boy complained. "I can help fight too!"

"Well, once the brat is taken care of we can leave whenever your ready," Jiraiya told them.

Despite having years to learn patience, Sarutobi was actually quite impatient for that time to arrive.

* * *

Naruto was fuming as he stood chained to one of the ship's masts. That woman didn't even have the courtesy to explain what she wanted with him before locking him up and leaving him here. Although he had a fairly good idea now. With plenty of time to think it over, he'd realized where he'd heard that voice before. It was the woman from Level 6 in Impel Down, the one who had been captured by his father.

He was pretty certain it would be in his best interest to get out of here as quickly as possible, so Naruto was focusing his efforts on coming up with a plan to that effect. He just needed some way to trick her into removing his handcuffs, even for just a moment. If only coming up with such a plan were as easily done as said. Naruto realized there might be another way out of this when he recognized the woman walking past him.

"Boa Hancock," he called out. "Quickly, get me out of here. I've been captured by one of the pirates on board."

"Why should I care about what happens to you?" she asked sharply.

"I'm a marine officer," he answered. "You're one of the Shichibukai. We're on the same side here."

"I'm busy chasing after my beloved," she informed him coldly. "I don't have time to concern myself with you."

With that, she walked off, taking with her his hopes of an easy escape. What was she doing here anyway? And who was her beloved? Those were concerns for another time, however, as saw his captor approaching him.

"Looks like we got away safely," she informed him cheerfully. "Now we shouldn't have to worry about any distractions. I've been waiting a long time for this, and I want it to make sure it goes well."

"I don't know who you are, but the marines won't let you get away with this ship," he told her. "If you release me now, things might go easier for you when you're recaptured."

She ignored his words, which wasn't terribly surprising. He wasn't actually expecting that to work, but that didn't mean he would give her the pleasure of showing any fear.

"I'm Uzumaki Kushina," she finally informed him. "Your friend Luffy had me convinced you were a pirate, so I was disappointed to see you followed in your father's footsteps after all."

Uzumaki Kushina? The name sounded vaguely familiar, but he couldn't remember any details. He might have heard something during his time in the academy, but if his father had captured her, she was quite a bit before his time.

"Well, Luffy isn't too bright," Naruto responded. "But why do you care if I'm a marine or not? You're only after me because of who my father is, right?"

"Actually, it's more because of who your mother is," she answered.

"You know my mother?" he asked, unable to completely hide how interested he now was.

"Know your mother?" she parroted before pausing a bit as if hesitating. "Naruto, I am your mother."

Naruto froze briefly at her words, letting the silence drag on for a couple of seconds before breaking into a chuckle. He had to give her credit. She said that with such a serious tone of voice that if the idea weren't so completely ridiculous, he might have actually believed her.

"If bad jokes are the worst you can come up with, it doesn't look like I have much to be afraid of," he taunted.

His words didn't seem to please Kushina, as she marched up to him and got right in his face.

"Do you have any idea how hard it was for me to work up the courage to say that to you after all this time?" she asked angrily. "The least you could do is take this seriously!"

"What are you getting angry for?" Naruto shouted back. "You can't expect me to believe the ramblings of a crazy pirate I've never even met before, can you?"

If anyone deserved to be angry it was him. She was just upset that he wasn't falling for her stupid ploy. He, on the other hand, had to listen to her insane claim.

"Of course we've met before," she insisted, refusing to admit defeat and drop the act.

"Not before Impel Down we haven't," Naruto exclaimed, just as stubbornly.

"You honestly don't remember do you?" she asked, putting on a rather convincing show of looking saddened by that.

Someone should just give her a reward for this performance and see if that would shut her up.

"And what exactly is it I'm supposed to remember?" Naruto asked, rolling his eyes.

Rather than answer she reached out toward his neck. Naruto tried to pull back, suspecting she'd finally given up on the ruse, but of course was unable to as he was still chained to the mast. Thankfully, such an action wasn't needed, as instead of throttling him, she simply grabbed the chain around his neck and lifted it to reveal the red gem he'd kept hidden beneath his shirt. The same gem he'd been wearing since his visit to Leaf Island.

"So you do have it," she exclaimed. "I gave this to you."

"My father gave that to me," Naruto corrected her.

It was true too. He still remembered the day he'd received it from his father as a birthday present. True it supposedly had been his mother's, but he wasn't about to let Kushina know how close she'd come to a lucky guess.

"Well, I didn't give it to you directly," she admitted. "Actually, I was more concerned with taking you back at the time. Unfortunately your father stopped me. That's was the last time we saw each other until Impel Down. I can't believe you don't remember it. I wasn't exactly quiet when your father forced me out of the building."

Actually, now that she mentioned it, he did seem to have a vague recollection of a crazy woman showing up in their house one night. He must have been about five at the time, but it had stuck with him because of all the yelling she'd done when his father had dragged her out. She been alternating between calling out to Naruto and screaming words he hadn't yet understood at his father.

Come to think of it, didn't that woman have red hair? No, he had to shake such thoughts from his mind. Even if there was a very small possibility she was telling the truth, he wasn't going to give her the satisfaction of realizing he was considering it.

"How dumb do you think I am?" Naruto scoffed. "I call you out on one lie so you make up another? Do you plan to just keep going hoping you'll eventually hit the truth by pure chance? You're not too bright if you expect me to be impressed if and when you succeed."

Naruto was pleased to see that her look turned even darker at this.

"I should have expected this behavior after you were raised by your father," she snapped at him. "If only I'd been around to stop him from corrupting you. You even went so far as to join the marines."

"Seriously?" Naruto asked in disbelief. "A pirate has the gall to call the marines a corrupting influence? The marines are the very symbol of justice. Any real mother would be proud to see her son in the marines and ashamed if he became a pirate."

"Yeah, the marines bring up such fine virtuous people," she said sarcastically. "I mean imagine how great the world would be if everyone spoke to their mothers the way you're speaking to me."

"You're not my mother!" Naruto insisted. "And I'm not going to believe otherwise even if you tell me you are a million times."

"Then I'll just tell you two million," she fired back, "or three million, or however many it takes until you realize the truth."

"Whether you're related or not, you certainly share her stubbornness," a new voice interjected.

"I'm not nearly as stubborn as she is," Naruto exclaimed to the large-headed man who had just appeared.

Although as soon as the words left his mouth he realized that probably wasn't the best way to support his claim.

"Ivankov," Kushina addressed the new arrival. "What are you doing here? I'm trying to have a private moment with my son."

"Forgive me, but I'm actually here for that," the man answered, pointing over the edge of the ship behind where Kushina stood.

The both of them looked in the indicated direction to see a submarine had surfaced off the edge of the ship. It looked like the same vessel that Luffy and Ace had escaped in, a fact that was confirmed when the two of them emerged and leaped across the water to land on the deck next to them. Luffy seemed to be in pretty good shape, but Ace had his right arm completely wrapped in bandages.

"Luffy!" Boa Hancock cried out, running over to their small group. "I'm so happy you're okay."

"Hancock!" Luffy replied cheerfully. "Thanks again for all the help rescuing Ace."

"Anything for you, Luffy," she answered adoringly.

Luffy was the person she had fallen for? That certainly reinforced his belief that he didn't understand women at all.

"Naruto, you're here too!" Luffy exclaimed excitedly. "But what are you doing chained up?"

"He's chained up because, despite what you told me, he's a marine and not a pirate," Kushina answered.

"Wait, really?" Luffy asked, dumbstruck by her response.

"It's not as if I haven't told you so myself more than once," Naruto reminded him.

"So that means … you tricked me!" Luffy accused him.

Naruto was just glad that Luffy finalized realized the truth. He'd been getting more than a little tired of how dense he was being on the subject.

"You should be thanking me for that," Naruto told him. "If I hadn't, you would have probably gotten yourself killed fighting Magellan."

"I would have managed somehow," Luffy replied stubbornly.

"Anyway, we need to figure out where to go from here," Ivankov announced. "We've got one ship to get us all where we want to go."

"The first thing we're going to do is get me back to my crew," Kushina announced. "It's been far too long since I've last seen them."

"I can't wait that long," Luffy complained. "I have things to do."

"Do you even know where you crew is these days?" Hancock asked her.

"Well, no," she admitted.

"I thought as much," Hancock responded. "Then before that I'm going to call my ship and take us to meet up with it. It won't take long and I'll be able to take Luffy and Ace where they need to go. I don't care what you do after that."

"Fine," Kushina admitted. "But that's all the delay I'll allow. After that we're finding my crew if we have to search the entire world."

"We're actually not in a huge hurry to get anywhere," Ivankov informed them. "But having our own marine battleship would be a huge asset. If you let us keep the ship, we won't complain about tagging along while you look for your crew."

"Good, that's settled then," Kushina exclaimed, before turning on Naruto. "And what are you smirking about?"

It looked like Naruto hadn't been able to keep his expression neutral. Not that he'd been particularly trying. In fact, he wanted to tell her this.

"You may not know where your crew is, but I do," he boasted.

"Great, where are they?" she asked eagerly.

"I'm not telling," Naruto told her smugly.

Once again Naruto was treated to her face turning red, and he was bracing himself for another explosion. Instead she simply turned around and started walking off.

"I can't take any more of you right now," she called out as she walked. "I'm going to cool my head, but I will be back, and you'd better be ready tell me where my crew is by then."

"I need to go call my ship," Hancock announced before Kushina was even out of sight, then quickly departed herself.

"Actually, I have some things to take care of as well," Ivankov told them. "You three play nice while we're gone."

So it was now just Luffy and Ace standing next to the chained up Naruto. Ace was the first of the three to do anything, as he walked up to Naruto, glowering at him.

"So, you're a marine, huh?" Ace asked rhetorically. "For your sake I guess I'd better stay away from you. No telling what I might do to a marine after what happened to the old man. I lost some good friends too, I'll have you know."

"Well I think your anger is misplaced," Naruto replied, too riled up to hold his tongue. "It's their own fault for attacking us. A lot of good marines died in that battle as well."

"They only did that to rescue me," Ace spat out angrily. "You marines knew that would happen if you tried to execute a member of Whitebeard's crew. It would have been better for everyone if you just let me go. But of course, just because of Roger, Sengoku would never think of letting me live."

"Don't try to act all high and mighty," Naruto fired back. "The whole lot of you are pirates. If you hadn't all chosen a life of crime, none of this would have been necessary in the first place."

"You're the one who's being all self-righteous!" Ace shouted at him. "Whitebeard has done more good for this world than that worm Sengoku could ever dream of!"

"Stop fighting!" Luffy ordered, pressing his way between them and shoving Ace away from Naruto.

"Out of my way, Luffy," Ace demanded, trying to push the other pirate aside, but Luffy refused to budge.

Taking a different tactic, Ace yelled at Naruto through Luffy.

"Tell me, how many of my fellow pirates did you kill?" Ace demanded of him.

"I don't see what difference that makes," Naruto replied unhelpfully.

"Answer the question!" Ace ordered.

Naruto was reluctant to answer him, as the truth might look like he was just lying to save his skin, but he relented in the end.

"The only pirates I even had a chance to fight at Marineford were Orochimaru and Kushina," he admitted. "Obviously the latter of those fights didn't end so well for me."

"Good," Ace answered relaxing a bit as he stopped trying to force his way past Luffy.

"Not that I wouldn't have fought them if I'd had the chance," Naruto added, still feeling belligerent.

"Maybe so," Ace replied, "but as long as you didn't I can reign in my hatred of you."

"You should forgive him," Luffy interjected. "After all, grandpa is a marine, and he's not that bad. I don't think Naruto is either. Besides, I've already decided."

"Decided on what?" Naruto asked him, not sure he wanted to hear the answer.

"I'm going to let you join my crew after you leave the marines," Luffy announced.

Yeah, he should have known better than to ask that question. He only wished his hand weren't bound so he could massage his head to try to stop this headache he felt coming on.

"I'm not going to leave the marines," Naruto told him firmly.

"Why not?" Luffy asked. "If we worked together, there wouldn't be anyone who could stop me from becoming the Pirate King."

"Luffy, I just don't want to be a pirate; I'm happy being a marine," he insisted.

"How about a compromise then?" Luffy asked. "You can let me have that dog that's on your crew instead."

"How is that a compromise?" Naruto shouted out, loosing his cool a bit. "You're still the only one getting anything. In a compromise both sides need to get something out of it."

"I know that," Luffy answered, sounding a bit annoyed. "But I don't want to give you any of my crew members. Can't you just let it go this one time?"

"Even if you were offering someone in return, I'm not going to barter away my crew," Naruto told him.

Their argument was interrupted when they heard Ace chuckling to himself as he watched.

"I'm sorry," Ace told him. "My little brother isn't very bright. But he's a surprisingly good judge of character. If he thinks you're alright, then I suppose I have it in me to forgive you."

With that Ace began to walk off. Naruto was still in a bit of a confrontational mood and wasn't about to let him just leave so easily.

"What makes you think I want you to?" he asked the departing pirate. "I have done anything that needs forgiving!"

Ace, however, wasn't going to be baited this time and simply raised a hand in a simple wave as he continued to walk off.

"If you join my crew, Sanji can cook your meals every day," Luffy told him. "And he's a really, really good cook."

"Why is it back to wanting me to join now?" Naruto asked wearily.

The worst part of being alone with Luffy like this was that he was now, quite literally, a captive audience.

* * *

Haku remained hidden in a small storage room, staying silent so she wouldn't be found. She couldn't remember a day that held more surprises than today had, and it wasn't even over yet. Hearing the door creak, she froze, hardly even breathing from where she hid behind the crate.

Squinting her eyes as light poured into the dark room she glimpsed at the man who had just entered. Her eyes were treated to the sight of a very familiar, makeup covered face as he closed the door behind him. Seeing who it was, she leaped out from behind the crate.

"Ivan-sama," she called out.

"Ah, Haku," Ivankov answered. "I finally have some time to speak with you."

"Good," Haku replied. "I admit it was quite a shock to see you'd escaped yourself after all that planning to get me out with a message."

"Yes, well, Dragon's son showing up threw a wrench into our plans," he explained. "Anyway, you'd said before that you've been working with Naruto while in your disguise, right?"

"That's correct," Haku confirmed.

"Excellent," he responded cheerfully. "Given whose son he is, I'd like you to continue the ruse as long as possible to keep an eye on him."

"I might be able to manage that," Haku agreed, "but I'm not sure his mother will want a marine on her ship."

"Yes, that might make things a bit difficult," Ivankov admitted, "but I already have a plan. Here's what we're going to do."

Haku listened carefully as Ivankov revealed his proposal, occasionally adding suggestions of her own. As they began to work out the details, Haku was beginning to feel quite good about their chances. This could really work.

* * *

"Have you heard anything about Naruto?" Tashigi asked Smoker hopefully after she'd managed to locate him.

They were currently the only two occupants of a large white tent set up on Marineford. Even the buildings that were still standing were too unstable to risk occupying them. Crews were already at work trying to clear away rubble to prepare to rebuild, but it would take some time to do so. Anyway, the sigh the man let out made it clear his news wasn't going to be good.

"I'm not going to lie to you," he replied. "The ship he was taken on hasn't been spotted. If we haven't seen it yet, then it's probably through our net. So we don't even know which direction they're headed.

"There has to be something else we can do," Tashigi told him, despite the fact that she had no ideas of her own.

"The best thing you can do right now is try to take your mind off it," he responded. "Worrying won't help anyone."

That was easier said than done even if she wanted to take his advice, which she didn't. She couldn't stand the thought of being safe in Marineford enjoying herself while Naruto was being tortured somewhere else. But Smoker pressed on, apparently trying to distract her from her worries even if she wouldn't do so herself.

"Based on the video feed, I guess in your case, you really did capture one of the Shichibukai," Smoker told her.

"Video feed?" Tashigi asked curiously before another part of his statement brought bigger questions to her mind. "Wait, in my case? What do you mean by that?"

"Just what it sounds like," Smoker answered. "I had nothing to do with Crocodile's defeat."

"You can't be serious," Tashigi replied incredulously. "Why would they announce you had and even promote you if that's the case?"

"Because the World Government refuses to give credit to the person who really was responsible," he answered bitterly. "And believe me, I'm not happy about getting a promotion I don't deserve."

"Who exactly was responsible?" Tashigi queried.

"Straw Hat Luffy," Smoker replied to her shock.

She had further questions on the subject, but was interrupted when the she heard the tent flap open. In walked Mihawk, himself. Tashigi jumped in surprise, admitting she was a bit in awe at being in the presence of the greatest swordsman in the world.

"Kusanagi," Mihawk said to her without preamble, "give it to me."

"What?" Tashigi asked in confusion. "Why?"

"I saw you fighting with it," he informed her, "and you're not worthy of a sword like that."

Tashigi grit her teeth at his answer. It's not as if she hadn't come to the same conclusion herself, but the words stung nonetheless. She actually found herself tempted to comply, but just couldn't bring herself to do so.

"No," she said simply. "I know that you're right about that, but I can't give it up. Not yet, anyway."

"Oh, and what could be so important that you'd risk defying me over it?" he asked, sounding more curious than offended.

"There's a man named Zoro," she told him. "A man that I simply must defeat. I may not be worthy of this sword now, but I'll need it when the time comes that I am."

"You're no match for him either," he told her coldly.

"I know that too!" she shouted at him in frustration. "And I know that no matter how hard I work to get stronger, he keeps improving just as swiftly, so I can never seem to catch up to him. Even so, I'm still not going to give up."

"Yes, having a rival can be a powerful motivating force," Mihawk agreed. "If you were actually somewhat of a challenge for him, you might push Zoro to grow stronger the same way he's pushing you."

"That's not exactly my goal," Tashigi muttered to herself.

"Perhaps not," Mihawk, replied, having apparently heard her, "but the thought is appealing to me. Very well, I'll train you myself. If you really are serious, I may at least be able to stop you from being such an embarrassment to that sword. Come with me."

She was momentarily thrilled at the prospect of training with Mihawk, but then she remembered exactly what the situation currently was. Mihawk looked eager to start the training right then and there, but she couldn't possibly go now.

"I'd love to receive your training," she told him honestly, "but I simply have bigger concerns right now. You see, my captain has been captured and ..."

"This isn't an offer you can take at your leisure," Mihawk interrupted crossly. "I thought you had more determination than that. You can either come with me now or forget it completely."

"Go with him," Smoker ordered her from where he'd be watching the entire exchange. "There's nothing you can do for Naruto right now. At least if you train you'll be better prepared if that changes."

He was right. She had to trust that Naruto would make it through this. The best thing she could do was train herself so that she could stop something like this from happening next time. And with whom her teacher was going to be, that was more than just empty talk.

* * *

Naruto found himself glad to see Luffy go, as he departed with Ace aboard Hancock's ship. It gave him a moment of peace and quiet. Although he was disappointed that he hadn't quite been able to use Luffy to help him escape. Convincing the boy to free him had proved as simple as asking. Unfortunately, he should have been a little clearer in what he wanted, as Luffy's plan to do so had been to ask Kushina for the key. That had put a quick end to that.

Now he was alone, with night having already fallen. He supposed he would find out soon enough if he'd be able to sleep standing up and chained to a giant wooden pole. As stiff as he already was from his time as a prisoner, he doubted it. While he was trying to find a more comfortable position, he saw Kushina walking his way.

"Hello again," she told him calmly, without a hint of her earlier anger.

"Hello yourself," he responded dryly. "What do you want, this time?"

The woman actually looked hesitant to reply, as she stood there silently for several seconds. She did finally work up the courage to speak.

"I'm sorry about before," she said, actually sounding serious in her apology. "It's just that I've been hoping this day would come for a long time, and it just didn't go at all like I imagined it would. And, well, I've always had a bit of a temper, so I just kind of lost it a bit. But I want you to know that, whether you believe me or not, I am your mother, and I'm not going to just give up on you."

"Releasing me would go a long way toward helping me believe you," Naruto suggested hopefully.

"Nice try, but no," she answered with a smirk. "Still, if you promise not to try to escape until morning, I can see about getting you a bed to sleep in."

Not sure if she was seriously offering, Naruto nevertheless considered it. He'd deal with a night chained here if it would help him escape, but seeing as he didn't have a single idea for doing so, it might just be worth taking her up on her offer. Being well rested would give him a clearer mind to think of something tomorrow.

"Alright," he agreed. "I promise."

"Good," she said, pulling out a key and getting to work at releasing the various chains that held him. "I really don't want to have to keep you locked up like this."

It was at that moment that Naruto finally admitted to himself that he believed her. It was for a combination of reasons really. She'd seemed genuinely emotional in the brief speech she'd just given him for starters. There was also the fact that Naruto couldn't think of any motivation for her to try to trick him like this. Even the resemblance her face clearly bore to his own had helped.

Of course, none of this meant that he had accepted her, or would even admit that he believed her. As far as he was concerned, whatever biological role she'd played, a criminal like her wasn't his mother. He didn't know if she'd seduced his father or what, but he couldn't see why he would never even mention her to Naruto if she was a woman who deserved that role. There was, however, something he could offer her instead of his acceptance.

"I'll tell you where your crew is," Naruto exclaimed as the last of the chains dropped down to floor.

"Really?" she said hopefully.

"Well, I only actually know where I ran into them," Naruto admitted. "So I can't lead you to the exact location of their base. Not to mention that they might have already moved elsewhere."

"It's still a better lead than I have otherwise," Kushina replied. "Oh, and is Nawaki still on the crew?"

"I believe that was the name of one of them," Naruto confirmed.

"Great, then as long as we get somewhat close them, he should find us," she informed him, although she didn't explain just how that would be the case.

He was a bit disappointed, but not surprised to see that she left the handcuffs on as she started to lead him toward the room he'd be staying in.

"So, why are you telling me this?" she asked as they walked along.

"Don't read too much into it," he warned her. "Just think of it as thanks for offering me a bed and trusting me to keep my word. Besides, it doesn't really matter whether I'm a prisoner on this ship or yours."

Not to mention that he wasn't the only one who knew where he'd last run into the Burning Skull Pirates. If someone else figured out who she was, they might send ships to that area. So telling her could very well increase his chances of rescue significantly. He just hoped they were able to put the pieces together in time.

* * *

"Kakashi is in charge of the rescue?" Kiba complained to his mother.

"Keep it down," she ordered sharply. "You are in a hospital … sort of."

In a field medical tent to be more precise. He was currently lying in one of the beds that he'd yet to be released from despite the fact that he felt completely fine now.

"I'm sorry, but can you blame me?" Kiba asked at a lower volume. "Kakashi doesn't exactly radiate reliability."

"Believe me, I'm not too thrilled with it either," his mother replied. "But he does claim to have a possible lead."

"Yeah, and I'm sure he'll get around to following it … eventually," he muttered.

* * *

Kushina certainly had been right about her crew being able to find them. They hadn't even reached the spot Naruto had been leading them to before her ship was spotted sailing on an intercept course. The two vessels pulled alongside each other and Naruto was soon led down the ramp from the captured battleship to the smaller pirate ship.

No sooner were they on board than Naruto was treated to the sight of Kushina being all but assaulted by a younger woman as she slammed into her and wrapped her up in a hug that nearly sent the both of them into ocean below.

"Captain!" the young woman cried out, as she hugged her tightly. "I can't believe you're finally back."

"Tenten?" Kushina asked as she was regaining her balance. "Is that really you? I can't believe how much you've grown."

"It's good to see you again," Kurenai added, clearly amused by the antics she'd just borne witness to. "I admit I'm rather looking forward to stepping down from the responsibilities of captain."

"Wait, you're the captain?" Kushina asked. "I would have thought for sure Nawaki would have taken the job. He's always been the ambitious one."

"I actually was captain for a while," Nawaki admitted. "But you know how it goes. More than half the crew was only there because they were infatuated with you. Once you were gone it was hard to keep people from leaving. Giving Kurenai the job is probably the only reason we have any crew left."

"As I recall, wouldn't you be on the top of any lists involving infatuation with the captain," Kushina quipped.

From his embarrassed reaction, Naruto could only assume there was more than a little truth to her words.

"That was a long time ago," Nawaki finally said in his defense. "And back on topic, my devil fruit power played a big role in my giving up the job as well. It may be useful, but it's not exactly the type that inspires the crew. Kurenai's power is much more suitable for a captain."

"That's what you get for just eating the first devil fruit you come across without even finding out what it is," Kushina admonished him playfully.

"I suppose I should have searched for one that matched my name instead," he deadpanned in response.

"Now don't start that again," Kushina warned him, a hint of temper in her voice. "I only just got back and I don't want to get into that argument right now."

"And look who you brought with you," Tenten said with a malicious smile, finally bringing attention to Naruto. "I was hoping I'd see you again. I've been keeping a list of things to do if we ever had a reunion. I have a feeling you won't enjoy them nearly as much as I will."

"Why don't you tell me about a few of the things on this list of yours," Kushina encouraged her sweetly.

"Well, I normally keep my weapons razor sharp, but I've been saving a special few that I've let grown dull," she informed them, rubbing her hands together in anticipation. "They won't cut through flesh nearly as easily, making the process all the more excruciating."

Tenten was so into describing her plans that she failed to notice the dangerous gleam that was forming in Kushina's eyes as she went on. A look that was quickly becoming more and more obvious.

"That's my son you're talking about!" she yelled out, as she rapped Tenten on the head with a fist hard enough to look quite painful.

"I'm not your son," Naruto replied in what was almost a reflexive reaction at this point.

None of the assembled pirates paid him any attention to his words, however.

"Your son?" Tenten asked in confusion as she rubbed her head. "I thought he was Minato's son."

"He is," Kushina confirmed. "Children do have both a mother and a father, you know."

"That means … " Tenten began, trailing off as you could almost see the gears working in her head. "He forced himself on you? That no good, perverted … ow!"

The last bit was the result of a second hit to the head courtesy of Kushina. If Tenten kept this up, she end up with lump to rival the buns on her head.

"Don't talk about my husband that way," Kushina ordered crossly. "He may have been a marine, but he was still a great guy all around."

"Your husband?" Tenten asked, her confusion obviously growing by the moment. "If he was your husband, why did he send you Impel Down?"

"That's a bit of a story," Kushina answered, "but one I'm happy to tell, seeing as no one here has heard the details yet."

Naruto did his best to look disinterested even though he was eager to hear this himself. Not that he'd necessarily believe what she had to say.

"It all started back when Naruto was still a baby," she began. "Minato managed to talk me into letting him take care of our son for a while. He said it would be safer for him back in Minato's home town than on a pirate ship. As reluctant as I was, he finally convinced me."

"But then you went and changed your mind," Nawaki interjected.

"I didn't change my mind," Kushina replied defensively. "It was never supposed to be a permanent arrangement. Minato was the one who didn't want to give him back when he was older."

"As if a pirate ship is any more of a place for a five year old than a baby," Nawaki responded rolling his eyes as he did.

"I had to get him back from Minato before he could fill his mind too much with marine propaganda," she argued. "So I snuck away to Leaf Island to do just that."

"Something I warned you against doing," Nawaki pointed out.

"Will you shut up and let me tell the story!" Kushina yelled at him, losing her cool due to the constant interruptions.

"Fine," he replied, trying to sound calm but still holding his arms out in front of him defensively in what appeared to be an ingrained reaction. "I don't know what happened after this anyway, so I won't be able to fill in the parts you deliberately leave out."

She sent him another glare but decided to go back to her tale rather than argue further.

"So anyway, I had the bad luck of Minato actually visiting Naruto at the same time I tried to get him," she continued. "So we got into a disagreement that got a bit out of hand, and somehow I end up handcuffed much as Naruto here is now."

"Thanks for the reminder," Naruto deadpanned.

"Then my luck went from bad to worse," she told them. "We'd made so much noise, that Minato's crew came running. Now most of them didn't know about our relationship, so the cry quickly goes up that Minato had captured the great pirate captain Uzumaki Kushina."

"So he just sent you to prison to save his own career?" Tenten speculated.

"It wasn't as simple as that," Kushina replied. "He did lock me up in his ship, but he promised me right then and there that if I swore an oath to give up my life of piracy and become a law-abiding citizen, he would help me escape no matter the consequences."

"And as hopeless as it was otherwise, you refused to consider it," Nawaki commented, earning himself another angry look from Kushina.

"I was convinced he was bluffing," Kushina told them. "He was hoping I'd accept, but I was sure that if I just refused, he'd eventually let me go anyway. For Naruto's sake even if not for my own. Looking back on it now, he was probably just as certain that I would eventually give in to his demands. I don't think either of us realized the other wasn't going to back down until I'd already been handed over in Enies Lobby. And even then, neither of us would say anything."

"You're telling me this whole thing was because the two of you were both too stubborn for your own good?" Kurenai asked, looking as if she was having trouble believing what she'd just heard.

"That's about right," Kushina admitted. "So it's no surprise here that Naruto ended up with a double dose of stubbornness and won't even admit that I'm his mother."

"You're not my mother," Naruto told her despite the stubbornness jab.

"See," she exclaimed, before looking back up to the battleship. "Ivankov! Are you there?"

"I'm right here," the man replied as his oversized head peaked out over the railing.

"I escaped from prison and met up with both my son and my crew," she told him. "If that's not a cause for celebration, I don't know what is. Would you guys care to join us?"

"We'd love to!" he answered eagerly. "We'll be right down."

"Was that Emporio Ivankov, commander in the Revolutionary Army?" Nawaki asked her.

"That's right," she confirmed.

"You really do make the strangest friends," he told her.

"True enough," she admitted. "Anyway if you want to hear about more of them, let's break out the liquor and I'll tell you about this Luffy kid who rescued me."

Well, Naruto supposed it would only be to his advantage if they got themselves drunk. Now hopefully there was a rescue on the way. Even if there wasn't he'd find some way out of this.

* * *

Naruto sat chained to a chair in the center of one of the ship's rooms as two men stood guard over him. He could easily break the chair if he wanted to. Naruto was tempted to do so and take his chances against the guards even chained as he was. But he really had nowhere to go. It's not as if he could swim away. Nor could he row a boat handcuffed as he was. No, he needed to figure out some way to get these cuffs off.

"It's hard to believe we're actually on the crew of Uzumaki Kushina herself," one of the guards exclaimed proudly. "I joined just because of how famous the Burning Skull Pirates used to be, but I'd never thought I'd ever have her as my captain. We could really be in the big leagues now."

"She's still just one woman," the other guard replied. "Most of the old crew is long gone with people like us as replacements. It's not as if she can bring back all the old glory by herself."

"You're just upset because we're on guard duty when everyone else is partying," his companion told him. "Besides, Nawaki and the captain … I mean Kurenai are still here too."

Their debate was interrupted when the door opened and Ivankov slipped inside, ducking his head to make it under the door frame.

"What do you want?" one of the guards asked him.

"You see, we have another marine prisoner," he explained, catching Naruto's interest, "and she won't leave us alone about making sure Naruto here is okay. I was hoping you could watch her for a few minutes while she checks up on him so we can finally get some peace and quiet. She shouldn't give you any trouble; she didn't put up much of a fight when we caught her."

Naruto's mind was racing now. Just who was it Ivankov was referring to? Maybe Tashigi? She might have followed him and been captured, but he doubted she would have been as easy to capture as the man made it sound.

"Let's see this marine of yours," the man demanded of him.

"Certainly," Ivankov agreed, stepping to the side and revealing the woman behind him.

"Haku?" Naruto asked in surprise when he saw her.

"Naruto, I'm glad you're alright," she replied.

"Nice," one of the pirates said appreciatively of Haku. "We'll certainly watch her for you."

"Yeah," his companion agreed, "for as long as you'd like."

"Good," Ivankov responded. "Then I'll leave them to you."

Ivankov then ducked back under the door and left, closing it behind him. Haku hurried over to the chair where he was chained.

"They didn't hurt you did they?" Haku asked in concern.

"No," Naruto assured her. "I'm not a fan of being locked up, but that's the worst thing they've done to me."

"Hey, back away from him," one of the pirates ordered her. "Don't think we'll let you try anything funny."

"Sorry," Haku replied, immediately backing up.

After she moved away from him, she caught sight of a mirror against the wall and walked over to it. Arriving at the reflective surface, she peered into it, looking to be checking the state of her hair. Although it soon became apparent that something was wrong as her body went stiff. She then started grabbing at something near her neck that Naruto couldn't see. It almost looked as if she was fighting against an invisible arm that was strangling her.

"What's going on?" one of the pirates demanded to know.

"Help her," Naruto ordered angrily as they stood around just watching the scene play out.

Almost as soon as Naruto said that, Haku crumpled to the floor with her back to him. The pirates still seemed to be at a loss for what to do. Naruto was about to get up and try to figure out what was going on himself when they finally acted.

"You check on her, and I'll cover you," one of the pirates ordered as he pulled out a pistol and pointed it in the direction of the fallen marine.

"Right," his companion agreed, unsheathing a sword and cautiously approaching the young woman. "This better not be a trick, because if you try anything funny you'll regret it."

Before he'd even reached Haku, he dropped his sword and started struggling with something near his neck in the same manner Haku had done. He was only doing it for a few moments when he fell to the ground as well and lay there unmoving. His partner lost all courage at the sight and began running for the door.

"I'm getting out of here!" he cried out.

Before he'd reached it, however, he collapsed to the ground himself. Although, strangely enough, this one hadn't given any signs of being strangled. Naruto had also caught a flash of something that looked like metal sticking out of his neck the moment before he fell.

Naruto was now the only conscious person in the room. The only visible conscious person in the room, he quickly corrected himself. He still didn't know what was going on. This could be anything from a rescue to an assassination or even angry spirits. He wasn't about to wait quietly, however.

"I don't know who you are, but show yourself," he ordered to the seemingly empty room.

"Not so loud," a voice said quietly from the side, drawing his attention to where Haku was now getting back to her feet. "I'm trying to rescue you."

"Wait, so you did all this?" he asked, while following her request to not make so much noise. "How?"

"I faked being the first person attacked so I wouldn't be suspected when they woke up," she answered. "As for how I did the rest, I'll explain later. For now, I need to get you of here. After you're free, we can steal a row boat. There's a marine ship hiding nearby that we can escape on if we make it that far."

"Do you have the key to these handcuffs and chains?" Naruto asked.

"No," she replied, before pulling out some needles, "but I'm pretty good with locks."

She then went to work, starting with the chains wrapped all around his torso. Naruto was thrilled to finally be having a chance to escape. Technically all he needed was to get his handcuffs removed, and he could get himself out of here, but there was no way he was going to leave Haku behind after she was risking her own life rescuing him.

"Thank you," Naruto told her, as the lock to the first of the chains was picked open by Haku. "I owe you big time for this."

"There actually is one thing you could do to repay me," Haku informed. "I'd like to join your crew if possible. I never really fit in on my old crew, but I've enjoyed the short time I've spent with yours."

It sounded like an odd request, but not one Naruto would be opposed to. He would have agreed right there if not for this nagging sensation that something was off about all of this. Trying to figure out what it was, his eager smile slipped in a frown.

"You're one of the rebels aren't you?" he asked. "I'm afraid I've already had someone join my crew under false pretenses. I'd really prefer not to fall for the same trick twice."

"What are you talking about?" Haku asked him. "Why would I be risking my life to rescue you if I weren't really a marine?"

"You tell me," Naruto answered. "But I have some questions for you as well. Why would Ivankov conveniently leave you in here with me without even being bound in any way? How would you know about a marine ship hiding in the area if you were a captive all this time? For that matter, why do you even care if they suspect you're behind freeing me if you plan to escape with me? That wouldn't make sense unless the person you're protecting is Ivankov and not yourself."

"I can explain it all later, but for now I need to get you out of here," Haku told him as the last of the chains were removed from him, leaving just the handcuffs.

"Sure," he said with mock sincerity, "just tell me name of your commanding officer and when we get back we can personally go and ask for your transfer. I'm sure he'll recognize you, seeing as you definitely aren't a rebel."

Haku paused from her efforts to free him and let out a sigh.

"We prefer the term revolutionaries," she finally said, admitting what he'd already figured out. "That said, I'd still appreciate a spot on your crew after I free you."

"You expect me to take a known spy with me?" Naruto asked in disbelief.

"My mission was just to keep an eye on you and make sure you stay safe, not to spy on you," Haku told him. "Ivankov probably has plans for you, but I'm not privy to them. If you let me come with you, I swear that all I'll do is protect you as my mission states. I won't even pass on any intelligence without your permission."

"And I'm just supposed to simply trust your word on that?" Naruto asked dubiously.

"I can understand how you'd have trouble believing me," Haku admitted. "However, we revolutionaries want to overthrow the World Government because we believe it's too corrupt. If anything, we hold ourselves to a higher moral standard than most of the marines who are willing to live with the corruption.

Naruto wanted to point out that a group willing to start a violent rebellion to get what they wanted might consider breaking an oath for the sake of the greater good. He wanted to, but for some reason he just found himself believing Haku would keep her word. Besides, a spy was much less dangerous when you knew they were a spy.

"Okay," Naruto agreed, "but I have one condition of my own."

"What is it?" Haku asked.

"If Tashigi ever finds out you're a rebel, I get to deny all knowledge of that fact," he told her. "And you have to back me up on that."

"I'll agree to that," Haku told him with a touch of laughter. "Now let's finish getting you free."

She made quick work of the handcuffs, releasing him from the restraints on his power.

"Actually, if you're with Ivankov, it will probably be safer for you if you go back to feigning unconsciousness," Naruto pointed out. "He should be able to get you out of here, right?"

"That's true," she agreed, "but my mission is to get you out safely."

"Don't worry about me," he told her. "Without those seastone handcuffs, I can be back to Marineford in an instant."

She raised an eyebrow in response to that claim.

"An interesting power," she told him.

"I'm intrigued by your power as well," he replied. "We can tell each other all about them back in Marineford. I'll be waiting for you there."

"I'll be there as soon as I can," Haku agreed, moving back to the spot by the mirror where she'd pretended to be assaulted.

"See you then," Naruto said before activating his power.

A flash of memories hit him, revealing everything that had gone on since his capture. It also confirmed that he was indeed back in Marineford. Now to go tell his crew the good news.

* * *

Tashigi was pulled from her sleep by someone calling her name. She'd always hated being woken up from her slumber prematurely. As the sound wasn't going away, she forced her groggy mind tried to piece together what was going on.

She vaguely remembered turning in early after being exhausted from her training with Mihawk. She finally regained enough of her senses to recognize that the voice calling out to her was Naruto's. One of his clones must want her for some reason. It had better be pretty important, whatever it was.

"What is it?" she called back, not even attempting to hide her annoyance from being woken.

"I just wanted to let you know I was back," he told her. "I'm sorry if I woke you, but I thought you might want to know as soon as I arrived."

"Why would I care if you're back," she told him grumpily. "I didn't even know you'd gone anywhere."

"No, I mean I'm the real Naruto," he told her. "Haku helped me escape from the pirates."

"That's nice," she replied, before rolling over and hoping he would let her go back to sleep now.

A moment later, she realized just what it was he'd said and threw the covers off her as she instantly came fully away. Running outside her tent, she almost crashed into where he was standing on the other side.

She felt a moment of panic when it hit her that she hadn't even bothered to get dressed before running out, but a quick check of her clothing reminded her that she'd been too tired to change before bed. She never thought she'd be thanking her own laziness for saving her. But with that crises averted before it even started she returned her attention to Naruto.

"You're back," she said excitedly. "You're really back. They didn't do anything to you did they?"

"I'm completely unharmed," he assured her. "I'll tell you some of the details later. Anyway, I'm sorry again about waking you up like that."

"No, I'm glad you did," she told him honestly. "So, you say Haku rescued you?"

"Yeah, I'm actually planning on having her join the crew," Naruto informed her. "She should be arriving here within a few days, so hopefully they won't object to us staying until then. Anyway, I still need to go find Kiba, so I'll let you get back to sleep."

At first she planned to do just that given how tired she'd just been moments ago. However, by the time he'd walked off, she realized that she was no longer in the least bit tired Not just in terms of needing sleep, but as physically exhausted as she'd been just a few hours ago, she was now full of excess energy. Tashigi doubted she'd be able to get back to sleep if she tried.

Oh well. She felt great so maybe she could get some extra training in before she went back to bed. Returning to her tent, she cheerfully grabbed her sword and set out to do just that.

* * *

Still exhausted from his ordeal and having stayed up late last night, Naruto found himself sleeping in well past when he would normally get up. He probably would have continued sleeping if the ringing of a loud bell hadn't woken him up.

Crawling out from his tent to see what was going on, he saw a number of marines running around in a panic. Stopping one of them he asked what was going on.

"Monkey D Luffy, Jinbei, and Dark Lord Rayleigh are all here!" he answered worriedly. "And there's no one here who can stop them."

That was a dangerous group. Naruto knew he wouldn't be able to take the three of them on either, but he had to check out what was happening. He'd wager anything Luffy had something to do with that bell ringing, so he set off at a sprint in the direction it had come from. It didn't take him long to arrive at the Ox Bell, and sure enough he found all three of them there. Luffy quickly spotted Naruto running up toward him.

"Ah, I don't want to fight Naruto," Luffy exclaimed. "We've done what we came to do, let's get out of here."

The other two men didn't argue, and the three of them were soon running back toward the bay. If they were leaving, Naruto was content to let them. The battle between Rayleigh and Kizaru was still fresh in his memory and he knew he'd be hopelessly outmatched by just that one man.

"Did you see that?" he heard someone call out. "He chased them away!"

Whoever said that was a fool if he thought they were afraid of him. Still, it looked like this bit of excitement was over.

* * *

"What do you mean he left?" Tashigi demanded of the marine in front of him. "Smoker wouldn't just leave without even saying anything to me."

She'd gone to Smoker's tent to speak with him only to have this marine standing at the door tell her he was no longer in Marineford. Obviously he was mistaken.

"Wait, are you Tashigi?" he asked.

"That's right," she confirmed.

"He left this letter for you," the man informed her, holding out an envelope.

"Thank you," Tashigi mumbled, as she took it and quickly pulled out the letter and began to read it.

_Sorry for running out on you, but I was called away_

_suddenly last night. I was thinking of asking you to_

_come with me, but seeing how worried you were _

_about your captain, I knew how that would go. So_

_I decided not to put you on the spot and force you_

_To tell me yourself. _

_Anyway, I'm glad to hear Naruto is back safely. If _

_I read the situation wrong, you're always _

_welcome to put in a transfer. I'd be happy to have _

_you working with me again._

Tashigi was actually a bit a annoyed that he was jumping to conclusions like that. There was no way he could possibly know what she would have decided if he asked. Sure she was worried about Naruto, but he was the one captured. She would have been worried if Smoker was captured as well.

Anyway, what's done was done. Smoker was already gone and she didn't really see any reason to put in for a transfer. She was sure with everything that had happened there was more than enough paperwork to go around already. There was no need for her to add more to the pile. She'd stick around with Naruto for a while longer yet.

* * *

Kushina still couldn't believe how incompetent those two guards had been to let Naruto escape like that. Had the crew really fallen that far? One of the first things she was going to do was to try to round up as much of the old crew as she could. Maybe she could find some decent fresh blood as well. Either way she wasn't going to leave things in their current state.

Still, as loathe as she'd been to admit she might be taking the wrong approach, Naruto escaping might be for the best. He was mule-headed enough that he might have denied that she his mother to the end of time just so he wouldn't have to give in.

That didn't mean she was going to give up on him. She wouldn't even consider such a thing. She would just need to come up with a new plan. And seeing Tenten walking across the deck, a possibility was already beginning to form in her mind.

"Tenten," she called out, getting her attention.

"Yes, Captain?" she asked. "What can I do for you?"

"I just wanted to do a little more catching up," she replied. "We have more than a decade worth of it to do. Anyway, as quickly as it ended, it was nice to see you and Naruto together again."

"Again?" Tenten asked in confusion.

"Oh, I guess I didn't go into the details yesterday," Kushina replied. "You see, I didn't give Naruto over to his father until you were three and he wasn't quite two yet. So you two had a couple years of being playmates."

"That's … quite surprising," Tenten admitted, a bit shocked at the revelation.

"We probably still have pictures," she told the younger woman. "You were so protective of him back then. You pretty much cried for weeks on end when Minato took him."

"It really is a shame you let him talk you into that," Tenten declared. "You never would have ended up in prison otherwise. Also, I admit it would have been nice having a friend my own age growing up."

"Who knows?" Kushina said offhandedly, "Maybe you'd have ended up as more than friends."

"What are you talking about?" Tenten asked, blushing at her implications.

"You know I've always thought of you as a daughter," Kushina told her in reply.

"Really?" Tenten asked, and Kushina could see her whole face light up at that declaration.

"Of course," she answered. "And I was just thinking that if you two had gotten together, it would have become official. Of course I don't suppose that's very likely now, with how determined Naruto is to stay a marine."

"Really Kushina, would you stop manipulating the poor girl?" Nawaki asked from behind her.

He would have to show up at the worst possible time.

"She wasn't manipulating me," Tenten told him sharply, immediately coming to her defense.

"Actually, sweetie, I was manipulating you a little bit," she admitted. "But I promise you that every word I told you was true. I really do care deeply for both of you, and nothing would bring me more joy than to see the two of you living happily together."

"So the first step of your plan was to convince Tenten to go after Naruto for you," Nawaki speculated. "But what were you going to do after that? He's a marine officer; it's not like he's going to go out for a nice dinner with a known pirate."

"It worked for me and Minato," she argued.

"As I thought, you didn't have a plan," he said in exasperation. "You need to stop being so impulsive and think things through."

"I thought you like my impulsive side," she told him mischievously.

"That depends on just what impulsive actions you're taking," he replied suggestively. "I have a few ideas if you're interested."

"If you're done trying to seduce the captain, I have work to do," Tenten told Nawaki coldly, before turning and walking off.

"What's with the attitude?" Nawaki called after her. "I just came to your defense and everything. And for the record, she started that, not me."

"Serves you right for trying to get in my way," Kushina told him triumphantly.

"I give up," he replied. "Do whatever you want."

"Believe me, I will," she promised.

* * *

"Garp has stepped down from his post," Kong informed Sengoku. "We'll have him remain in the marines for the sake of rearing up the next generation. So if you intend to step down as fleet admiral, I suggest you do the same."

So, he was asking if Sengoku wanted to retire as well? It was something he'd been considering lately. He'd even all but planned to do so after the battle with Whitebeard. Now, however, he was having very strong second thoughts.

"The offer is tempting," he replied, after a moment of further contemplation. "However, it leaves a bad taste in my mouth to quit after our failure at Marineford. I just don't feel like I'll be satisfied in retirement with Roger's son still on the loose."

"I admit I'm glad to hear that," Kong told him. "Losing both of you would have been quite the blow to the marines. Now let's see if we can't come up with a way to erase that little black mark on your record that Ace left."

"I already have a few ideas," Sengoku informed him.

"Coming from you," Kong responded. "Ace has much to worry about indeed."

* * *

Naruto was currently providing Kiba and Akamaru with some clones to use for training. There hadn't been much else for the four of them to do while they waited for Haku. He wished that he'd told her to meet them in Sabaody instead. Then again, their ship was still back there and he wasn't sure how easy it would be to get a ride to the archipelago, even as close as it was.

There were some benefits to staying here, though. The open field they were training in provided a great view of all the construction that was going on. It really was impressive how much had been done already, but it was probably going to be years before it got back to its former glory.

As far as the training went, his clones were obviously going easy on the pair of them. This was more for their benefit than his. Still, it was impressive how well they worked together. Somehow they seemed able to predict each others' movements better than Naruto could with his clones, and his clones thought exactly the same way he did.

"You two make a pretty impressive pair," he admitted during a lull in the training.

"We should," Kiba boasted. "We've been practicing together all our lives. Honestly, I don't know why we ever fight alone."

"The only time I remember either of you fighting without the other is against Orochimaru," Naruto pointed out, not sure what Kiba was getting at.

"Yeah, but against the Straw Hat Pirates and again the war with Whitebeard, we both picked our own targets and split up," Kiba explained. "We're partners; we should be fighting like a team. It's no surprise neither of those occasions ended quite like I would have hoped."

"You mean you got beat up both times," Naruto translated for him.

"I gave about as good as I got," Kiba insisted petulantly.

"Hey Tashigi," he heard one of his clones calling out.

He was surprised to see the final member of their little group at this time of day. Anyway, Naruto dismissed his clones for the moment and went over to see why she was here.

"Done with training early today?" he asked.

"Done with training indefinitely," she answered. "Mihawk left. I suppose it's not surprising. I could hardly expect one of the Shichibukai to stay around just to be my personal trainer. Still, I wish I had a little more time with him. I was making some real progress."

"I can't exactly teach you swordplay, but I'd be happy to go back to our old training," Naruto offered.

"Captain Naruto!" a voice called out from a short distance away.

For a moment Naruto thought he was going to have to run from another reporter, but thankfully it was a marine that was calling to him. He didn't know why reporters suddenly had such interest in him. At first he'd thought they were just flagging down any officers they found to get more opinions on the war.

Naruto had even eagerly accepted the first couple of interviews, but they only seemed to want to ask him personal questions. After the second reporter started hounding him on his love life he decided that was it for interviews and had been avoiding them ever since. They must have found out who his father was or something. He just didn't realize so much of his dad's fame would carry over to him.

"Rear Admiral Kakashi wants you to meet him by the docks," the man told him.

"I wonder what he wants." Naruto declared, genuinely curious.

"He's probably here to warn you to avoid a red-haired woman who escaped from Impel Down recently," Kiba quipped. "Whatever it is, I'm _sure_ he's bringing it to our attention in a timely manner."

"You never did give us the details on what happened while you were captured," Tashigi pointed out.

"There's really just not much to say," Naruto replied evasively. "Anyway, let's not keep Kakashi waiting."

He'd decided he preferred to let as few people as possible know about his relationship with Kushina, and that included his crew. Not that he distrusted them or anything like that. It just wasn't something that was easy to talk about. Especially as he was still determined to deny any such relationship existed. Unfortunately, Tashigi and Kiba hadn't been satisfied with the heavily edited version he gave them and continued to pry.

For now, he hurried off at a quick pace toward the docks. Hopefully they'd be too busy struggling to keep up with him to ask any more questions. Due to his speed, he arrived very quickly and soon spotted Kakashi. To Naruto's surprise, the rear admiral wasn't the only person he recognized as Haku was standing right next to him.

"Look who I picked up while I was out trying to rescue you," Kakashi told them.

"I'm glad to see you made it out safely," Naruto told her.

"Likewise," she answered. "It appears your power was as effective as you claimed it was."

The rest of his crew pulled up behind him and Tashigi took the opportunity to approach Haku, clasping her hand and shaking it.

"Thank you very much for helping to rescue Naruto," she told the other woman. "You hardly even knew us, yet you risked your life for him."

"I'm hoping we'll get the opportunity to know each other better in the future," Haku replied. "I look forward to working with you."

"I actually have quite a bit of good news yet to share," Kakashi interjected. "For starters, I managed to do some maneuvering to you all back under my command."

"Nice!" Kiba cheered immediately.

"I thought you might appreciate that one," Kakashi said to Kiba with a hint of amusement. "Also, Naruto, I have word regarding the final decision with your rank."

"They decided to let me keep it?" Naruto asked hopefully.

"No, they decided to void your promotion," Kakashi corrected him. "Although in honor of your capturing Jewelry Bonney, they were going to promote you back one of the ranks up to commander."

"I thought this was supposed to be good news," Naruto complained a bit sullenly.

"I'm not finished yet," Kakashi declared. "That was before the big scene you made here in Marineford."

"The big scene?" Naruto asked in confusion.

"You haven't heard?" Kakashi queried unhelpfully. "Well, you'll find out soon enough. Anyway, the paperwork hadn't gone through yet, and they decided that anything that looked like a demotion wouldn't go over very well after that. So they decided to just let you keep your rank and 'grow into it' I believe they said."

"So I do get to stay a captain then?" Naruto asked, hoping Kakashi wasn't just toying with him.

"Actually no," he answered. "You see, after that, the World Government got involved. They sort of insisted the marines promote you to commodore. It seems they want to make you out to be something of a hero, so they're planning a big award ceremony where they give you a medal to go with your new rank."

"Wow, a commodore," Kiba said appreciatively. "That means my mother won't be able to boss us around anymore."

"They were impressed with your performance as well, Tashigi," Kakashi continued. "So they're promoting you to Lieutenant Commander and giving you a medal in the same ceremony."

"I'm honored," Tashigi said humbly, "but I really didn't do much."

"What about me?" Kiba interrupted to ask. "Do I get a promotion too?"

"Sorry, but what exactly did you do during the war?" Kakashi asked him. "I don't seem to have any reports other than a medical one."

"I'll have you know I took out a number of those escaped prisoners," Kiba replied defensively. "And I received my injuries from Emporio Ivankov himself."

"Really?" Kakashi asked curiously. "I hadn't heard that he went anywhere near your assigned post."

"Well, things got a bit crazy toward the end," Kiba answered, a bit flustered trying to avoid giving away what he'd done.

"Still, it wasn't my call, but you didn't get promoted this time," Kakashi informed him. "Maybe you'll have better luck in the next war."

Naruto surreptitiously looked over at Haku, hoping Kiba's admission wouldn't cause any problems. If it had upset her, that he'd been fighting with her comrades, however, she didn't show any signs of it.

"Anyway, on the next piece of news," Kakashi announced. "This part is courtesy of the marines, no World Government hands on this. You see, the marine brass may not agree that you're ready for the rank of commodore, but they do acknowledge your strength. As such, they want you to be better equipped to use that strength."

"So, new weapons?" Tashigi speculated.

"Better than that," Kakashi answered, "Follow me."

The five of them did so as he led them along the dock. He soon came upon the marine ship that Naruto assumed must contain whatever he was referring to, but Kakashi simply stopped at the edge of it rather than leading them on board.

"This is your new ship," he exclaimed grandly.

Naruto was shocked speechless as he took a moment to look over the ship. It was nearly twice as large as their old one and had a very sleek look to it. It was the standard green hull with white sails of a marine vessel, although he found he didn't recognize the ship type

"It's the first of a brand new line of ships," Kakashi informed him. "It's no match for a battleship in power, of course, but you won't find a faster ship in the fleet. We plan to put you to good use hunting down pirates, and this should put a dent in their plans if they try to flee. Obviously, it's also got the standard seastone plating that will let you travel in the Calm Belt."

"I don't know what to say," Naruto admitted still staring at the ship in awe.

"What are you going to name it?" Haku inquired.

"Name it?" Naruto questioned her. "I hadn't planned to name it anything. We never named our old ship."

"That won't do," Haku insisted. "It's bad luck to sail a ship without a name."

Naruto thought that over for a moment. He certainly didn't see any harm in naming the ship. But what name to choose?

"Actually," he began after thinking up a name he liked. "I do have an idea if you guys don't mind."

"What is it?" Kiba asked him curiously.

"What do you think of the Minato?" he asked.

"I think it's a great name," Kakashi told him. "Your father would be honored."

"It's not like we could complain about that name without seeming like jerks anyway," Kiba quipped. "Anyway, let's go see what it's like on the inside."

Not even waiting for their response, Kiba ran on board and quickly hurried below deck. Eager to see it himself, Naruto followed after him.

* * *

Kiba loved their new ship. It was obvious the ship and everything on it was pretty much brand new. They'd probably sailed it from the shipyards straight to Marineford. Kiba had already claimed his room, which was more than half again as large as his old one.

It was great that it wouldn't be nearly so cramped to share with Akamaru. Beyond that, it was already furnished with a dresser and what had to be the softest bed he'd ever lain on. Just lying there looking up at the ceiling almost made him feel like royalty it was so comfortable. He just had to show this to Naruto.

"Naruto," he called out as he exited the room.

"I'm in here," Naruto answered from a room further down.

Kiba walked over and opened the door all set to boast about how great the beds were but was brought up short by what he saw. The room was nearly twice as large as the bedroom he'd claimed and was dominated by a large desk. The piece of furniture looked to be solid oak, and although he was no expert, Kiba would wager it was a pretty nice piece of craftsmanship.

There were also a number of bookshelves lining the walls, sharing space with a few maps and even a couple of paintings. Off to the side Kiba saw an open door that led to a separate bedroom connected to the office area.

"Captain's quarters," Naruto informed him. "Although this really is a bit much, if you ask me."

He could say that again. Suddenly the beds didn't seem like they were worth mentioning anymore.

"What to you say we see what they've got in the galley?" Kiba asked. "I'm actually getting a bit hungry."

"Sounds good," Naruto agreed.

As they went up the stairs and came out above deck, Kiba saw everyone else was still wandering around topside as Kakashi looked on cheerfully.

"Actually, I do have one more thing to give you," Kakashi announced when they'd arrived. "This gift is from me, personally."

He pulled out a small box and opened it to reveal a collection of large, yellow berries that were about twice the size of a grape.

"Is that a devil fruit?" Naruto asked him in an awed tone.

"That's right," Kakashi confirmed. "I'm afraid I could only get one, but I did look into which fruit it was for you. I'm told it's a zoan type, although if they mentioned which one specifically I don't recall."

Kiba was already growing excited about this. A zoan type ability would be perfect for him. He just had to be the one who got that fruit.

"Well, I obviously already have a power," Naruto exclaimed.

"I do as well," Haku added, which came as a surprise to Kiba.

But he could worry about that later. Akamaru and Shino also had powers and Nojiko wasn't even here. Beyond that, she wasn't a marine and he would definitely argue it should be marine property if someone tried to say she deserved a shot at it. So that just left him and Tashigi. Unfortunately, a zoan power would be almost as useful for her as it would be for him.

"Zoro doesn't have an ability," Tashigi announced. "I won't stoop to using one to defeat him."

Praise any deity that was listening for Tashigi and her overblown sense of pride.

"I'll take it," Kiba announced eagerly.

"You sure," Naruto cautioned him. "You don't know what you'll turn into."

"All Zoan powers have the same basics," Kiba explained. "Enhanced speed, strength, stamina, and healing. Granted I think it'd be great if I could get one of the dog type Zoan fruits, but I'd take any of them. At the very least I do have a better chance at a dog one than other animals because there are several of them."

"You've really done your research on this," Kakashi complimented him. "Well, I guess you're the only one who wants it, so it's yours."

Hardly even waiting for the words to leave his mouth, Kiba snatched the fruit away from him and started stuffing berries into his mouth. He had to suppress a gag as the flavor, which really was quite awful, hit him. But he hardly let that slow him as he continued devouring them, making sure to finish every last one.

"Try to transform," Naruto suggested as soon as he finished.

"Does it work that quickly?" Tashigi asked.

"I'm going to find out," Kiba answered.

He wasn't quite sure how this worked, but he tried picturing himself as an animal and willing his body to transform. He was thrilled to see it started almost immediately as fur began to sprout from his skin. As an extra bonus, it was white in color, which would match with Akamaru when the two of them fought, making them look all the more impressive.

He soon lost his balance and fell on all four as his hands transformed into paws. When it had finished, he got his first hint that things hadn't gone quite as well as he hoped when he noticed that everything looked bigger than he expected.

Looking around he saw his crewmates looking on in shock. Actually, when he looked again one of the assembled faces wasn't covered with shock at all but something else entirely. The face looked almost excited.

"What a cute cat!" Haku squealed as she scooped him up out of the pile of clothes he was in and hugged him to herself before he even realized what was going on.

"Hey, what are you doing?" he protested, discovering he could still talk in this form.

A moment later though, he realized just what part of Haku's anatomy he was being pressed against and found his mind unable to form any other words even if he tongue was still capable of them.

"Oh, sorry," Haku said in embarrassment as she set him down, apparently having come to her senses without any further prodding from Kiba. "I apologize for losing myself there."

"That's alright," Kiba assured her, as he brought himself back to his senses.

Once Haku had released him, however, it didn't take him long to start bemoaning his poor luck.

"Of all the possible animals did it really have to be a cat?" Kiba complained.

"There are a number of different types of cat fruits as well," Kakashi pointed out. "So you shouldn't be too surprised to have got one."

"You knew exactly what it was all along!" Kiba accused Kakashi. "You just didn't tell me so you could trick me into eating the fruit!"

"Quit whining and show us your hybrid form," Naruto ordered him.

Naruto was right. His animal form might be worthless, but he should at least try out the rest of his power Moving back to his pile of clothes, he tried to will a slow transformation and made sure he had his pants properly shielding him before anything embarrassing became evident.

When he'd finished his second transformation, Kiba was again standing upright and still covered in the white fur. He also noted that despite how small his animal form was, his hybrid form was actually a little bigger than his human form, as he now stood a few inches taller than Naruto. He also couldn't believe how energetic and light on his feet he felt.

"I feel great," he exclaimed to everyone. "Like I could run all day and not even break a sweat."

He also noticed that he kept the catlike ears and his tail, although the latter was crammed uncomfortably into his pants. Getting an idea, he took the claws that now grew from his paw-like hands and used them to slice a hole in the back of his pants where they were pressing against his tail.

He was impressed with how sharp they were that they could cut through it so easily. Thanks to them, he soon had a circular hole that his tail fit through quite comfortably. He'd have to think of a better solution later or he'd go through a lot of pants switching between hybrid and human form, but he was still too excited to think about that later.

"Weapons should be an extension of the body, huh?" Kiba said out loud as he was still admiring his claws. "Doesn't get much more so than this. Add in my enhanced speed and strength and that stupid cook is going to be in for a world of hurt the next time we meet."

He wanted to try this form out a bit more, and he had something in mind that he seemed to instinctively know he'd be able to pull off. Jumping into the air he did a quick double back flip and easily landed on his feet.

"Impressive," Haku complimented him.

Kiba was still disappointed that he ended up with a cat zoan, but he could hardly complain about getting this power overall.

"Hey Naruto," he called out to his friend. "Get out your clones, I feel like a nice spar right now."

Yes, Kiba could definitely get used to this.

* * *

"I'm ready for my training," Nojiko called out as she entered Shakky's Bar.

"I'm afraid yesterday was our last day," Shakky answered her call.

"What, why?" Nojiko asked, disappointed at the news. "I'm not nearly ready yet."

"Well, it seems your captain will be returning today," she answered. "So unless you want him to leave you behind we really don't have much choice."

"How do you know that?" Nojiko asked her, pleased with the news but curious as to how she'd come by it.

"You can't expect me to give away all my secrets," she replied playfully. "Anyway, I want you to have this."

Shakky then handed her a thin hardcover book. Looking it over she found there were no identifying marks on the cover to give away the contents.

"What is it?" she asked.

"It's a manual I wrote up to help you continue your training without me," she answered.

That was great news. She could rejoin Naruto and still continue learning to use Haki.

"I don't know how to thank you," Nojiko told her earnestly. "You've done so much for me."

"No need for thanks," Shakky assured her. "Just pay me the 100 million beli you owe me for it."

The shock of that statement certainly ruined the moment in an instant.

"100 million?" she cried out in shock. "What happened to not charging Nami's sister?"

"That was for the information," Shakky answered. "And believe me, there are many people who would consider that a bargain price for the training you received."

"Maybe so, but there's no way I can afford that," Nojiko admitted.

She was beginning to get quite nervous. In her time training here, she'd seen what Shakky did to people who didn't pay her outrageous prices. She might not get out of here in any shape to meet up with Naruto.

"Don't worry about that," Shakky waved her off unconcernedly. "You can come pay me back whenever it's convenient for you. I won't even charge you any interest."

"That's ... surprisingly understanding of you," Nojiko responded, not sure if she should believe she was safe yet.

"Come now, we're friends aren't we?" Shakky asked. "Just make sure to pay me in person. I'll be awaiting your return."

Nojiko felt her previous cheer returning, so she smiled as she waved farewell to the older woman.

"I will. I promise," she told Shakky before turning to begin her trip back to the marine base.

A warning from her Haki caused her to duck as a rock sailed over her head.

"Good job," Shakky praised her. "Remember, keep your guard up at all times."

"I'll do my best," she vowed as she hurried off toward her destination.

As painful as the training had been, especially early on, Nojiko found she would actually miss Shakky. Still, she was eager to see all her old crew again, even Tashigi. Deciding to make the trip back into some extra conditioning she set out at a run. She'd already made much progress in this regard, and really wasn't too winded when she made it back to base.

Slowing down, she made her way in and soon found herself at the dock. She saw Shino already standing there waiting. It looked like Shakky's intelligence had been accurate, not that she'd really doubted her.

"They should be here in less than an hour," Shino told her simply as she walked up next to him.

"So ... are you excited to see everyone again?" Nojiko asked, hoping to strike up a conversation.

"It will be good to rejoin them," Shino admitted, "but I wouldn't describe myself as excited."

No, Nojiko didn't suppose anyone would describe him that way … ever. She tried a couple more times get some small talk going, but quickly decided that silence was actually the less awkward alternative. Anyway, soon enough a marine vessel became visible as it sailed toward the shore.

"That's them," Shino confirmed.

No sooner had the ship pulled up than Naruto leaped off it and onto the dock.

"Hey Shino. Hey Nojiko. Good to see you both again," he greeted them warmly.

"Good to see you too, Commodore," said replied, giving him a mock salute.

"So you already heard about that, huh?" Naruto asked, looking a little disappointed.

"Yeah, you've been all over the news lately," she informed him.

"I believe that," Naruto said a bit bitterly. "The reporters just won't leave me alone."

"Yeah, I can see how that could get annoying," she told him letting out a nervous laugh and hoping he hadn't heard about her part in his rise to fame.

"Well, I do have couple pieces of news you probably haven't heard yet," Naruto said, perking up again. "First off, I'd like you to meet our new crewmember, Haku. Haku, this is Nojiko and Shino."

He pointed at a young, dark-haired woman about her own age that was currently walking down the ramp. She was wearing a marine uniform which Nojiko supposed wasn't too surprising. It was probably rare to have a third of the crew of a marine ship not even being marines. What were the odds of another such person joining them?

"Pleased to meet you, Haku," Nojiko said warmly.

"Likewise," Haku answered. "Naruto has already told me about the two of you, and I've been looking forward to this meeting."

"Well, the ship isn't too far away," she informed them. "Do you need any help carrying anything over?"

She saw Naruto now sporting a big grin in response to her offer, a fact that confused her a bit.

"We should be the ones asking you that," Kiba piped in from where he, Akamaru, and Tashigi had recently joined them.

He had quite a smirk on his face as well.

"Okay, what's going on here?" she asked, not enjoying being out of the loop.

"_This_ is our ship now," Naruto answered, pointing back as the vessel they'd just departed.

Nojiko hadn't paid it much attention prior to Naruto making that claim, but getting a good look at it now, it was certainly far more impressive than their old ship.

"This is really our ship now?" she asked in awe.

"That's right," Naruto confirmed.

"Judging by how swift your approach was, this should be quite an asset in our endeavors," Shino commented approvingly.

"And now that we're all back together," Naruto announced to them all, "what do you say we go make our mark on the world?"

* * *

"Welcome to Doctor Vegapunk's latest lab," Jiraiya announced as his ship pulled up to a jungle island.

* * *

**AN**

There, Naruto and his mother's big meeting is completed. I'm actually very happy with how it turned out myself. Hopefully you guys feel the same way. In case you're wondering, the subplot with the Leaf Island villagers is the arc that doesn't star Naruto I was asking about in the previous Author's Note.

The sentiment was overwhelmingly that I should just summarize, and the reasoning behind those opinions were solid. Yet I didn't feel I could do it justice with just a summary. So I decided to trim it down and spread what's left over a few chapters. It will mean a cliffhanger or two, but it does let me go into a bit more detail without having to devote a whole chapter to it.

The next chapter may take a bit longer. I pretty much have the details worked out for the subplot, but I've still got little more than an outline for Naruto's part of the story. A little warning about my future plans. I'm leaning more and more toward having a time skip myself. I'm also think I'm going to convert one of my two Naruto central arcs I've yet to write to be post time skip.

The reason I'm mentioning this, is because I'm strongly considering calling it the end of book one after the final pre-skip arc. I'm then probably going to take a few months break before continuing. It will give me more time to work out my plans and improve on them. It will almost certainly make for a better story. I'll also have the option of stealing more of Oda's ideas as he continues.

That doesn't necessarily mean I won't be writing. But I've just passed 200,000 words on this story, and I'd like a small change of pace, even though I'm not tired of this story yet. Although technically one of those changes of pace I'm considering involves this story anyway.

There's a few ideas I toyed with when writing this that I just decided were too crazy to put in or maybe just didn't fit. At some point I'd like to make a collection of omake style chapters that include some of the more amusing ideas that were cut.

So, this is almost certainly one of my top three favorite chapters, but let me know how you think about it. Love it? Hate it? Just kind of meh? Whichever way you feel, I'm eager to hear.


	20. Chapter 20

**Foreword: **

Don't get your hopes up too much by this small chapter. The story remains officially abandoned. I'll admit that my main reason for posting anything here was to plug my new Naruto AU, The Conduit. But at least I wasn't so crass as to do so without at least giving you something. And as short as the chapter is, I hope you'll find it enjoyable.

To explain a bit more why I'm starting a new story rather than continuing this one, I just realized that I'd already written 200,000 words and I couldn't think of any way to wrap it up nicely without at least another 200,000. It's just too much devoted to a single story, especially as it gets to be more and more work making sure the narrative remains consistent and free of plot holes the longer it gets.

I have other ideas I want to write now that I have the time again, and having learned from this mistake, I'll make sure I have a clear plan to give them a proper ending before they get too unwieldy. I may still upload a couple of omake stories I've had floating around for a while, but it's unlikely I'll ever go much further with the main plot. Sorry, but that's the way it is.

* * *

Tashigi was thrilled. Not only had she convinced Naruto they should stock up on supplies before leaving Sabaody, she had managed to maneuver her way into going with him to buy them. Just the two of them, with no one else to get in the way.

She had made up her mind that she was going to use this opportunity to confess her feelings to Naruto. As Tashigi attempted to work up her courage, their list of supplies that hadn't already been bought and carried back to the ship by Naruto's clones continued to dwindle. When she realized they didn't have much time left, she finally took action.

"Naruto, I have something important I want to tell you," she announced.

"I'm listening," Naruto answered, turning to face her.

Looking him in the eye almost made her loose her courage again, so Tashigi shut them tight and took a deep breath. She was determined to not let her doubts get in the way, deciding instead to just say what she wanted to before she even had a chance to think it over.

"You were so dreamy the way you fought Orochimaru. Please go on a date with me. We can go to the amusement park." Tashigi couldn't believe she'd actually said _that_. Wait a minute she hadn't said that. Opening her eyes she saw three young women had placed themselves between Naruto and her and were practically hanging over him.

"Ladies, I was kind of in the middle of an important conversation," Naruto told them, as he tried to free himself from them.

"I'm sure it can wait," one of the women replied. "You'll have a much better time with us than with her. I know a great restaurant nearby you could take us to."

As the women continued trying to seduce Naruto, Tashigi grew more and more angry. It had been so hard to get Naruto alone and then focus her determination. Yet despite that, they were just treading all over her effort and trying to steal Naruto from her at the same time. Tashigi was sure she would blow her top at any moment and she had no idea what crazy thing she would do when she did.

"Naruto, I really like you! I have for a long time but I've been afraid to say it!" Tashigi was almost looking around to see if someone else had interrupted before she realized that this time she _had_ been the one to say it. And not just say it, she had shouted it nearly at the top of her lungs.

Tashigi didn't know what had possessed her to make such a scene, but everyone in sight had stopped whatever they were doing, and dozens of people were now staring at her. She turned red as a beet and spun around, unable to face Naruto after making a fool of herself like that.

She was so occupied wishing herself invisible, she almost didn't notice when someone grabbed her hands. Looking up she saw Naruto clasping them firmly between his own and looking kindly upon her.

"I never knew you felt that way," he told her. "All this time I thought my own feeling were unrequited. But I'm so happy Tashigi, because I really like you too."

Tashigi's heart skipped a bit, before coming back twice as hard as if to make up for the lapse. She was in heaven. Tashigi hadn't even dared hope it would go as well as this.

"Aww, he already has a girlfriend, how boring," one of the girls complained.

"If I had known I'd be able to get a guy like that, I'd have joined the marines myself," another added as the three of them turned and walked off.

Inwardly Tashigi was in her own fantasy, bringing infamous pirates to justice together with Naruto and celebrating their triumphs with romantic dinners. She only wished she had confessed sooner rather than wasting the time they could have spent together. If only she'd had more courage and been more honest with herself about her feelings.

"That was great thinking, Tashigi," Naruto complimented her with a grin as he released his grip on her hands. "We chased them right off."

"Great thinking?" Tashigi asked in confusion, not sure what Naruto was getting at.

"Yeah, they completely bought our act," Naruto explained cheerfully. "You wouldn't mind if I pretend you're my girlfriend if something like this comes up again, would you?"

Tashigi's fantasy world collapsed to pieces around her at the realization that this had all been an act for Naruto. There was no way he could have missed how much her face fell and he quickly took a step back as his own expression took a distinctively worried turn.

"I'm sorry, that was a bit much to ask, wasn't it?" Naruto apologized. "I could see how much that embarrassed you. I can probably get Nojiko to help me out or something. I bet she'd get a kick out of fooling everyone."

"No!" Tashigi exclaimed loudly. "I mean, I'd be happy to help you."

"Really?" Naruto asked, cheering up again. "You're the best. Now what did you want to talk to me about."

Tashigi paused as she considered explaining that she'd been serious, but decided it against it. She'd already humiliated herself, and even if things went well from here on out, this was **not** how she wanted to remember an event as important as a confession.

"We can talk about it later," she said with a sigh.

For now, Tashigi just wanted to return to the ship and do her best to forget today had ever happened.

**Author's Notes:**

Now that the story is discontinued, I will admit that Tashigi was the pairing I had decided on for Naruto. For those who really wanted someone else, maybe that will make it easier for you to give up on the story. Now I really do hope some of you will go read and review my new story The Conduit. It's actually an older idea than Naruto the Marine, and one I've been itching to write for a long time.

Given this is by far my most popular story, I may even try another Naruto + One Piece crossover when I'm finished with that (although with a completely different approach and a story I can wrap up by the time it becomes this long.) That's assuming I actually complete my new story. I've now abandoned two stories in a row, and I know how painful that is as a reader. I'm determined to not make it three in a row (and I was off to such a good start with my first two stories too :( ). If I can't finish this one , I'll stop torturing my fans with doomed works and not post anything unless I've finished the whole story.


	21. How the story would have gone

**Foreword: **I've had several people ask me to write a summary of what would have happened had I continued the story. That much at least I can do. If you're clinging to hope that I might change my mind and continue this some day, and don't want the story to be spoiled, please don't read any further.

Be warned, I'm not going to bother even proofreading it, so you'll see how many mistakes my stories would have if I didn't. (Hint: a lot.)

**Hyuga Arc:**

Immediately upon leaving the Sabaody Archipelago, Naruto and his crew are sent to answer a call for help from an island nation shortly into the New World. It is home to the Hyuga, a human like race with eyes that function pretty much like the Byakugan from canon. Although the Juken is more about pressure points than chakra points, as the one piece world doesn't really have chakra.

Upon arriving on the island, Naruto is chased off by the Hyuga, with them claiming he's the one who's been attacking them. This is later discovered to be the work of Gekko Moria. Back when he was still one of the Shichibukai, he used his influence to have Naruto's corpse (remember when he died?) delivered to him.

Later, when Rob Lucci had been recovering from his loss to Luffy, Moria had tracked him down and stolen his shadow, which he had placed in Naruto's corpse. He had been using Naruto's corpse to abduct any Hyuga he could catch alone, killing some and stealing the shadows of others, creating his own undead Hyuga army. Naruto and his crew end up fighting, and eventually winning a battle against Moria, zombi Rob, and all the undead Hyuga he'd been able to gather so far.

Some takeaways from the fight are that Naruto sees the Rokuogun used enough that he's later able to work out how to do it himself. Also, they discover Haku is somewhat skilled in medicine and knowledgeable in pressure points when she is able to give him back use of his arm that he'd temporarily lost when being chased off upon their arrival.

**Vegapunk Arc:**

Long story short, a big battle against Vegapunk's army of cyborg animals, his personal supply of Pacifista, and one prototype Mark II Pacifista. During the time it's confirmed by Vegapunk that he was responsible for Minato's death. He rues the fact that Minato had destroyed the android his village had been guarding before dying from his wounds and most of the parts were too damaged to salvage.

It had taken him years, and he still hadn't been able to reproduce a machine that could fight as well as the original. The one thing he had come away with was the AI unit, which he had modified to control all the Pacifista remotely.

During the battle, his lab is destroyed, although since Vegapunk only spoke through a monitor they don't know whether or not he was ever in there. But the AI unit was destroyed which renders the entire Pacifista line inoperable, something that infuriates the leaders of the World Government.

Jiraiya leaves the marines and goes into hiding, but Sarutobi turns himself in. He insists he manipulated the villages into joining the attack via superstition and talk of curses and he was the only responsible for the attack. They agree give the other villagers amnesty, but one of them remembers that Naruto was from their village.

Calling into question the loyalty of someone from the village of traitors, they decide to test him by having him take Sarutobi to Impel Down after the Hyuga Arc finishes. Naruto doesn't know that's what he's doing until he arrives at where Sarutobi is being held.

Naruto was going to refuse his order and help him escape instead, but Sarutobi insists he's going to turn himself in whether Naruto takes him or not for the sake of the villagers. He gives him a speech about having to decide for himself whether to abandon the marines or not, but not to make his decision rashly. Naruto eventually gives in and follows his orders, escorting Sarutobi to where he's imprisoned in Impel Down.

Dragon also shows up during this part of the story and tries to personally convince Naruto to join the revolutionaries. As angry as Naruto is at the World Government, he still refuses, insisting it's better to change the system from the inside than to start a war that will result in countless deaths.

**Fire Country Arc:**

The arc starts with Danzo, one of the leaders of the World Government, in a discussion with Tsunade, the elected leader of the Fire Country. The Fire Country is one of the most powerful nations in the World Government. It's also rich in Seastone deposits.

Because of this resource, they built shipyards in the country that build most of the marines' coated ships. With the loss of the so many ships in the Whitebeard War, as well as the destruction of those they had watching the other Yonko, they have a shortage of warships. So Danzo is demanding they increase the quotas significantly for the year.

Tsunade refuses as the World Government doesn't pay enough for the ships they do build. The shipwrights make most of their money building private ships once the quotas are filled for the year. They're already having trouble keeping their skilled craftsmen who could earn more in places like Water 7, and she fears raising the quote will cause many to quit.

She insists that if they want more ships they have to pay more for each one. The World Government is opposed to this, however, as they're afraid any increase in taxes would cause more nations to join Dragon's rebels. Danzo tries to talk her into some sort of compromise to which Tsunade agrees.

She tells him that rather than the 100 extra ships he wants he'll get 1. When he protests she insists he leave before she decides that 1 ship will be a life boat.

At this point Naruto finally reports to the marines that his mother is Kushina. This turns out to be bigger news than he anticipated, as Kushina is a direct descendant of the royal line of Fire Country, a fact the World Government is well aware of.

After the Void Century, the World Government was extending its rule over the entire world by force. When they set their eyes on the Fire Country, it became clear to the royal family that they couldn't win. Unwilling to sacrifice their subjects in the futile war, but not willing to bend the knee themselves, the sailed off with a few of their most loyal subjects, ordering those they left behind to surrender.

Their deeds and the promise to one day return had become an enduring legend in the Fire Country, and a favorite story of children throughout. This was actually how Nawaki has found his way to the Kushina. When he was younger he set out determined to find the royal family, a mission he succeeded at, even if she had no desire to go back with him.

The World Government had kept a close eye on their descendants throughout the centuries, given their ties to one of their most important member countries. At first as they acted as early rebels, attacking World Government resources and trying to stir up discord.

After enough generations their actions devolved into simple piracy. This is when the skull and crossbones was added to the flame that was the emblem of their country, leading to the birth of the original Burning Skull Pirates.

There were a number of generations that lived fairly normal and boring lives, but always some story an infamous grandparent would stir up a sense of adventure. So inevitably, the old pirate flag flew once again as they continued the family tradition.

Knowing of his lineage, Danzo hatches to plot to give the Fire Country the king they always wanted. With Naruto's loyalty to the marines, he would certainly approve an increase in the quota of warships that the military organization so desperately needed.

Avoiding Naruto becoming a political pawn like that was exactly why Minato had been so secretive about Naruto and his mother. Being the son of a pirate wouldn't be that big of a deal, but being the heir to a powerful nation was. It's also the reason Dragon was so interested in Naruto, and why Ivankov had left Haku to watch over him. It wasn't because Minato was his father, but because Kushina was his mother.

Speeding along, Tsunade hates the idea of someone who's never even set foot in Fire Country ruling over it, especially if he's just going to be a puppet of the World Government. But the citizens are wildly supportive of the return of the royal family.

Nevertheless, her words get to Naruto, and although he does agree to accept the crown, his first act is to give all authority to rule in his stead to Tsunade until such a time as he's fit to lead himself. To this end he leaves a clone with her to learn how to rule from her, attend public functions, and the like while he sails back off with his crew.

**The Revolution Arc:**

In this arc Kakashi reveals to Naruto that he was an agent of Dragon's since long before the story started. Guy had been his contact with Dragon's forces, although Lee somehow managed to remain unaware of Guy's connections to Dragon. He had actually been ordered by Dragon to ensure Luffy stayed alive, despite not knowing the relationship at the time.

He was, however, aware of Nojiko being Nami's sister. He believed that given the ties, even if Naruto ever defeated Luffy, at worst he would return the entire crew more or less unharmed to Kakashi, who could arrange for them to 'escape.'

As such, he'd been deliberately sending them on missions that would take them near where the Straw Hat Pirates had been reported. He could show the upper brass that he was making serious efforts to deal with Luffy, while following his orders from Dragon at the same time. This was also why Kakashi declared that it made sense when he found out that Luffy was Dragon's son, as he then understood why he'd been ordered to keep him alive.

Kakashi reveals all the dirty secrets of the World Government, with proof to back up many of his claims, such as those pertaining to previous usage of the Buster Call. It's Kakashi who finally convinces Naruto, and eventually the even more stubborn Tashigi to join Dragon's Revolution.

Shortly thereafter Dragon declares the formation of his own government with its own marine force. Nations and marine leadership split into sides. Dragon's marines are lead by Garp, Kakashi, Jiraiya, and of course Naruto. Kakashi had been holding back his true strength while he was an agent, wanting to keep his rank low enough that his work wouldn't be too closely scrutinized.

Jiraiya, on the other hand, had never made it past vice admiral solely because he'd already left the organization five times to pursue his true passion as a "writer." He was always pulled back when he was needed, but wasn't considered reliable enough to go beyond his rank despite his strength. Arrayed against them under the leadership of Kong are Sengoku and the three admirals.

Dragon also forms his own version of the Shichibukai. Those roles are filled by Luffy, Jinbei, and Boa Hancock at the least. I'm waffling a bit on whether to add in Ace and/or Kushina. Leaning yes on the former and no on the latter (her refusing the position of course.)

Even Luffy wouldn't accept the position easily, but I figured I could have Vivi, Nami, and some other finally convince him that all he had to do was promise not to attack anyone who didn't deserve it and then the "good marines" like Naruto and Garp wouldn't have to try to capture him. He could them pester Ace to join at least in name and help with the war.

Arrayed against them on the Shichibukai would be Mihawk and Doflamingo at the least, although I'm sure I would have written in some additions as well.

Basically the story would have ended with a big war the good guys eventually win, ending in the destruction of the World Government.

**Sasuke Arc:**

I had a vaguely planned arc involving Sasuke and Itachi. Sasuke wasn't out to kill his brother in this world. There was no murder of his clan, so he still idolized Itachi. He simply wanted to get out from his brothers shadow and make his own name to prove himself worthy of joining Itachi's crew (which had the fishman Kisame as the first mate.)

I know I wanted to maneuver into a fight with Naruto and Luffy vs Itachi, although not due to any real malice on Itachi's part. Itachi's devil fruit power would have given him the illusionary powers of the Sharingan. I had in my mind a scene where Luffy was hit with three consecutive Tsukuyomi attacks but still manage to drag himself back up and throw himself at Itachi again.

This fact would have impressed Naruto greatly, who had heard the details from Shino, who had been rendered unconscious by a single attack during an earlier meeting. It would also lead to a strategic withdrawal by Itachi, who had exhausted himself with the repeated use of the technique.

This would be done over the complaints of Kisame, who was confused as to why he even used that ability when he could have easily defeated his opponents with his bare hands. Not to mention how he could probably still take them in his weakened state even without Kisame's help.

**Random Notes:**

I had planned an at least partial reconciliation between Naruto and Kushina, although I hadn't worked out the details. I did want to do a bit with Nami (having learned Naruto was royalty) trying to set up Nojiko with Naruto while Kushina did the same with Tenten.

Meanwhile I planned to have have Tashigi still going along with "pretending" to be Naruto's girlfriend. Despite being admonished by Nojiko repeatedly, she enjoys the dates and such they do for the public image so much that she continues to just pretend it isn't simply an act. She would do this for a while past the time skip.

The time skip was something I hadn't quite decided where to place. It would most likely have been either right before or right after the Fire Country Arc.

**Final Comments:**

There you have it. If I'd actually written it, I would have fleshed out a lot, changed some ideas until they were nearly unrecognizable, and added plenty more. But this was my plan in its most current state (missing a few things I sure I forgot to include.)


End file.
